Kendrick and Whitney are high school sweethearts.
Kendrick Lamar’s halftime performance at Super Bowl LIX will likely feature his 2024 smash hit, “Not Like Us.”
The music video for the Drake diss track, released last July 4, features Lamar’s longtime partner, Whitney Alford, and their two children dancing in their living room. “I wouldn’t even call her my girl,” Kendrick said of Whitney in 2015. “That’s my best friend. I don’t even like the term that society has put in the world as far as being a companion — she’s somebody I can tell my fears to.”
But who is Whitney Alford? Here’s what you need to know about Kendrick Lamar’s fiancée:
Whitney is from Compton, California.
Like Kendrick, Whitney grew up in southern Los Angeles. They met as students at Centennial High School, graduating in 2005, and have been dating ever since. After high school, she went to California State University, Long Beach, and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in accounting.
She has contributed backup vocals to some of Kendrick’s music.
On Kendrick’s 2015 album, To Pimp a Butterfly, she sings on “King Kunta” and “Wesley’s Theory.” On his 2022 record Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, she’s on four tracks: “We Cry Together,” “Father Time,” “United in Grief,” and “Mother I Sober.” She is also on the album artwork, along with their children:
And, as mentioned above, she appears in the music video for “Not Like Us.”
Whitney founded the nonprofit Love + Ethos.
Love + Ethos’ mission, according to their website, is “to create supportive spaces and opportunities for women journeying through motherhood while facing systemic, economic, and social challenges.”
“There’s so much opportunity to empower women and yet we are often the first to be overlooked, especially if you’re a minority,” she said. “Much of my career has encompassed helping women to feel seen, heard, and appreciated. I’ve recently acknowledged how this work comes from a place, deep within my lineage, with generations of women helping women and raising families together. The challenge for me has been how to utilize my own opportunities in an impactful way. I hope to be an asset to my community through my work with Love + Ethos.”
They’ve been engaged since at least 2015.
Kendrick confirmed their engagement in a 2015 interview, but didn’t share any further details. It’s unclear if they’ve since married.
She’s a mom of two.
Whitney and Kendrick have two children together: a daughter Uzi, born in 2019, and a son Enoch, born in 2022.
“In my life I’ve witnessed a great majority of father’s run from their responsibilities. I now understand that they were running from their own pain but children were left behind,” she posted on Father’s Day in 2022. “I understand they couldn’t properly communicate with women so kids suffered the consequence of their absence. I understand they needed validation and most times it was sought after outside of the home. And it was quite painful for all of us who knew this upbringing.”
She added, “I was almost 30 the first time I celebrated Father’s Day and it’s still one of the hardest for me. I know there are many women like me. So men it’s not as important for us to celebrate you, as it is for You to celebrate You. Celebrate your contribution to the next generation. I am grateful for the men that are showing me a different picture, my lens was very narrow before but not anymore.”
