Kendrick Lamar fans are already theorizing about the rapper's next album, days after the release of 'GNX'

Compton rapper and pgLang co-founder Kendrick Lamar shocked rap fans around the globe last week with the release of his sixth studio album GNX. The project, which was released by surprise in the middle of the day, is the first full-length outing since the rapper's highly-publicized beef with Drake. While many fans were quite taken with the new music, which has been called uncharacteristically straightforward by some, others felt that the album contained hidden signs of a second surprise drop.

Specifically, fans on social media took note of a brief teaser video, which was released on Kendrick's YouTube channel just 30 minutes before the full album arrived on streaming platforms. The video, which contains a song snippet that cannot be found on the full GNX tracklist, sees Lamar in a liminal parking garage with two Buick Grand Nationals, the car for which the album is named.

Some fans believe that the use of two vehicles is a sign from Kendrick that he intends to release two LPs. Others have speculated that the song snippet, which sounds quite different than most of the material on GNX, could be teasing a track on the rumored sequel project.

Though Kendrick Lamar fans have a knack for working themselves into a frenzy while searching through the cryptic artist's catalogue, there are several other puzzle pieces which may hint at GNX being something of an appetizer before the meal. The album's tenth track, "Heart Pt. 6," has been the subject of much discussion for this very reason.

Kendrick Lamar tends to release songs within the "Heart" series as teaser tracks ahead of his albums, though he rarely if ever releases a song from this series on the LPs themselves as part of the tracklist. Still, the choice to place "Heart Pt. 6" on GNX may have been sparked by Drake's use of the same title in a diss aimed at Kendrick, which was released back in May.

Fans have also pointed to cryptic tweets from the likes of Kendrick Lamar affiliates DJ Hed and Daylyt, which seem to suggest more music is on the way. These collaborators have previously posted accurate information regarding Kendrick Lamar's next moves during the beef, causing many hip hop heads to follow their words to the letter.

Of course, the pair could simply have been sharing updates about the status of Kendrick's upcoming Super Bowl halftime performance, or the planned TDE 25th anniversary album, which was meant to release in 2024, and has thus far had no confirmed release date.

It should certainly be noted that this is not the first time fans have whipped themselves into a fervor upon receiving new music from Kendrick Lamar. Back in 2017, some listeners believed that there were signs hidden throughout the "Humble" rapper's freshly-released album Damn, which indicated a second album was to follow days later. Fans affectionately refer to the now-debunked theory as DAMN / NATION due to the popular idea that the rumored follow-up would be titled Nation.

What do you think? Is Kendrick Lamar truly priming audiences for a second LP ahead of his Super Bowl LIX performance, or are the fans wearing their tinfoil hats even tighter than usual? Please let us know on our Twitter page.