Kendrick Lamar Links Up With Beyoncé For Surprise Remix Of ‘America Has A Problem’

Beyoncé has shared a new version of her fan-favourite Renaissance song America Has A Problem, with new vocals coming courtesy of Kendrick Lamar.

Lamar comes in heavy on the redux, starting it off with a fiery new verse that runs for more than a minute. In a key chunk of it, he raps: “Hey, boo-boo / too much complexity to learn me from Google / My momma told me that the money outgrew you / My horoscope said I'm really out my noodle / I'm troublin', I'm puzzlin', it's sudoku / Say Bey, it's America got a problem / Geeked up, choosy lover, that chose violence / Universal, please don't play possum / I’m a business man doin' as follows.”

Elsewhere in his verse, Lamar declares himself to be an honorary member of the Beyhive – Beyoncé’s cult-like fanbase – took a jab at artificial intelligence programs being used to emulate his rapping style (“Even AI gotta practise clonin’ Kendrick”) and acknowledged his ranking at #2 on Billboard’s recent list of the all-time greatest rappers (“Billboard, they know / After Hov, rightfully so”).

You can have a listen to the new version of America Has A Problem below, followed by the one that appears on Renaissance.

This marks Lamar’s third time working with Beyoncé, having first linked up with the R&B megastar in 2016 (when he appeared on the Lemonade cut Freedom). The pair later reconnected for Beyoncé’s 2019 effort The Gift – a soundtrack album for that year’s remake of The Lion King – on which they duetted for the song Nile.

Beyoncé is currently touring Europe and the UK in support of Renaissance, with a North American leg to follow in July. She’s yet to announce Australian dates of the tour – which reportedly features some intense security measures and precautions – but there’s already been debates over which venues are best suited for her to perform in. 

Regardless of where Beyoncé heads on her inevitable tour Down Under, it’s likely all dates will sell out instantly – such is the star power of the most-awarded artist in the history of the Grammys, after all. As for the cities she’ll hit, Brisbane will most certainly be on the docket: when she released Renaissance, she posted a series of photos in designer fare from around the world, including a striking black-and-white bodysuit by local designer Bethany Cordwell.

Renaissance arrived last July as Beyoncé’s seventh album, and marked her third consecutive LP to hit #1 on the ARIA Charts. It was not without controversy, though: the track Heated initially featured an ableist slur (which Beyoncé swiftly removed after she received backlash), and the track Alien Superstar caught flak from Right Said Fred over its sample of their 1992 hit I'm Too Sexy.