Kendrick Lamar made one young fan’s birthday unforgettable.
On Dec. 13, during his set at the Spilt Milk Festival in Canberra, Australia, the GNX rapper suddenly paused the show to sing happy birthday to 9-year-old Kalina Fowler.
“I was yelling out, it’s my birthday, it’s my birthday, and then Kendrick saw me yelling, so he stopped in the middle of the song,” Kalina told ABC Canberra. “It was the funnest time ever—my first ever concert.”
Rather than jumping back into the song, Lamar got the entire crowd to join him in singing “Happy Birthday,” then signed and handed Kalina a pgLang hat. She was clearly emotional, wiping away tears as the audience cheered around her.
According to the outlet, Kalina is a member of the Yukkumbruk Dancers and had performed earlier that day at the festival’s Welcome to Country ceremony. She originally hoped to meet Dot backstage, but ended up watching his performance from her grandfather’s shoulders instead.
“I think Kendrick was a bit surprised at the lyrics a nine-year-old was singing,” her grandfather, Robert Palm, told the outlet. “She knew every word.”
“People want my hat so bad, they tried to give money to me,” Kalina said. “I said this hat is really priceless, so I’m going to keep it for the rest of my life. I won’t let nobody touch it.”
