Kendrick Lamar is a proud father of two.
The “Humble” singer shares two children, a son and a daughter, with his fiancée, Whitney Alford. Their first child, Uzi, 5, was born in July 2019, and the couple's second child, Enoch, followed shortly after. Both Lamar and Alford — who’ve been together since they were teenagers — are notoriously private about their personal lives.
The pair have been engaged since 2015 but, aside from his song lyrics, the rapper rarely speaks about their relationship.
“I want something that’s just for me,” he told Vanity Fair in 2017 about why he keeps his love life so closely guarded.
Who Is Kendrick Lamar's Fiancée? All About Whitney Alford
Lamar has not only kept his love life private, but also has remained mum about any details surrounding his children. Fans only found out he had welcomed his second child when Enoch appeared on the cover of Lamar's 2022 album, Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers.
However, he has been open about how fatherhood has been beneficial for his self-growth.
“My children allowed me, in their development as human beings beginning to walk and talk, to remove my ego,” he said in a candid interview with W Magazine in October 2022. “To know that my children, too, will have their own independence, that allows me to understand the unconditional love on my end.”
Continuing, he explained how becoming a father has shaped how he sees others, too. “Will I allow them to be themselves? Will I allow them to journey off in the world and experience life for what they know of? That’s love, to me,” he said. “And when I look at that, I try to apply it with how I express myself, how I look at my career, and how I meet other individuals. Am I allowing them to be themselves without any judgment? My children have taught me that.”
From their births to how they've inspired their father, here’s everything to know about Kendrick Lamar’s two children.
Uzi, 5
Lamar welcomed his first child, a baby girl, with Alford in July 2019. Although her birth was reported in the media, the couple never made an announcement of their own, nor did they reveal her name at the time.
It wasn't until Lamar released his fifth studio album, Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers in May 2022 that he announced his daughter's name was Uzi.
Fans discovered her name thanks to the lyrics in the song “Mr. Morale,” where the rapper references his daughter with the line, “Uzi, your father's in deep meditation.”
At the 2023 Grammy Awards, Lamar won several awards for the album, including “Best Rap Performance” and “Best Rap Album.” During his acceptance speech, he thanked his family for being his inspiration. “First and foremost, I want to thank my family for giving me the courage and the vulnerability to share these stories and share my truth with this album,” he said.
Following his win, Alford shared a sweet video of their daughter’s reaction on social media. In the clip, she can be heard saying, “Daddy! He’s talking about us. He’s talking about his family... Uzi, Enoch and mommy.”
Enoch
Lamar and Alford kept the news of their second pregnancy fairly quiet and the couple never publicly announced that they were expecting. However, in May 2022, Lamar seemingly confirmed that they’d welcomed a second child, a son, with the release of Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers.
The album’s cover art, which both Lamar and Alford shared on Instagram, is a photo of their family. In the shot, Lamar stands wearing a crown of thorns on his head while holding their daughter. Meanwhile, Alford is seated on a bed behind him holding their infant son.
Again, the couple chose not to make any public announcements regarding his birth or his name, but another set of lyrics helped confirm the baby’s name as Enoch. In the song, “Mr. Morale,” Lamar sings, “Enoch, your father's just detoxed,” and in the song, “Worldwide Steppers,” he sings, “My son Enoch is the part two.”
Many of the songs on the album touch on intensely personal issues, including the rapper’s past trauma and journey through therapy. Speaking to W Magazine, he opened up about how his kids helped inspire him. He explained that, initially, he wasn’t sure he wanted to release the album because of how personal it was.
“[Then] I thought about my children,” he said. “I thought about when they turn 21, or they’re older in life and when I got grandchildren, or if I’m long gone — this can be a prerequisite of how to cope. That’s the beauty of it for me.”