The Story Behind Kendrick Lamar’s “Swimming Pools (Drank)”

In July 2012, Kendrick Lamar released “Swimming Pools (Drank),” a promotional single for his eventual sophomore studio album Good Kid, M.A.A.D City. With its now-instantly recognizable lyrics such as Pour Up (Drank) in the refrain and Why you babysittin’ only two or three shots? / I’ma show you how to turn it up a notch in the song’s hook, “Swimming Pools (Drank)” would go on to peak at No. 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 and now sits at 4x platinum certified by RIAA.

The hit single mostly touches on the temptation of alcohol and the downward spiral of alcoholism. As he croons about diving into a swimming pool full of liquor, Lamar warns of the dangers of being a drunk, and how the environment he grew up in sadly encouraged that lifestyle.

In interviews following the release of Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, an album where Lamar touches heavily on the circumstances of his upbringing, he discussed why he decided to write and release “Swimming Pools (Drank).”

“I wanted to do something that felt good but had a meaning behind it at the same time,” Lamar told Complex in 2012 about the chart-topping bop. “Really bringing that mainstream world to us, rather than a rapper with content along to the nation. I wanted to do something that’s universal to everybody but still true to myself.”

During his conversation with Complex, Lamar would continue to explain the two choices he was given as a youth regarding alcohol, and neither of them included not drinking it at all.

“What better way to make something universal than to speak about drinking? I’m coming from a household where you had to make a decision—you were either a casual drinker or you were a drunk,” he said. “That’s what that record is really about, me experiencing that as a kid and making my own decisions.”

Evident in the song and the way he spoke about it afterward, alcohol was a central aspect of Lamar and his family’s life while he was growing up. So much so, that even three years after the song came out, he spoke more about the topic during an interview with Billboard before the release of his third album To Pimp a Butterfly. Lamar would revisit “Swimming Pools (Drank),” and further examine how his mind worked when he was a teenager and was presented with alcohol.

“Teenagers don’t get it—we selfish,” he said. “Go drink, go smoke, go get fucked up. Why did I do these things? Because I was brought up around it? It damn sure was in the household. I said, ‘I know what happens to my family and certain friends when they get drunk and they smoke. They get out of their minds, they get violent. And that’s in my blood.’ I have little sips on special occasions, but getting all the way out of my mind may not be a good idea.”

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