Los Angeles — Top Dawg Entertainment’s annual Christmas Toy Drive at Nickerson Gardens drew in over 10,000 fans this year and I was one of them. Even though I have lived in Los Angeles for some time now, this was my first time attending a TDE Christmas Show and I made sure to bring some Legos for the kids. While there, I got the opportunity to have small talk with Jay Rock and TDE’s latest signee Alemeda before the show. As fans trickled into Nickerson for a promise of live performances from former-TDE-member-but-always-family Kendrick Lamar as well as current TDE artists SZA, Doechii, ScHoolboy Q, Ab-Soul, Ray Vaughn, and Isaiah Rashad, there was plenty to do while waiting and lots of good eats.
All of the performances were lit. I especially enjoyed hearing SiR’s performance and watching Kendrick Lamar bring the kids on stage “Squabble Up.” I think it’s really cool how TDE has built a legacy that has allowed them to build up the community they’re from. Giving back is so important, taking care of your neighbors is important, and being kind is important, especially during the holiday season. Accumulating over $700,000 worth of toys is a pretty big deal. TDE, having all these huge artists perform in the middle of the projects has to be inspiring for the youth in that community and naturally gets all my respect.
That being said, I can’t wait for the TDE anniversary compilation project!
