 Lamar also said that the album will showcase the influence of his hometown : " The kid that 's trying to escape that influence , trying his best to escape that influence , has always been pulled back in because of circumstances that be " . Before the album 's title was officially revealed , fans had already been calling Lamar 's major label debut Good Kid , Mad City or Good Kid in a Mad City , as it was a nickname of some sort that Lamar had given himself . The album 's title mainly refers to Lamar 's childhood innocence and how the notorious city of Compton , California affected that and his life . After keeping the album title 's acronym concealed , Lamar later revealed M.A.A.D is an acronym with two meanings : " My Angry Adolescence Divided " and more importantly " My Angels on Angel Dust " , with Lamar stating : " That was me . I got laced . The reason why I don 't smoke , and it 's in the album . It 's in the story . It was just me getting my hands on the wrong thing at the wrong time , being oblivious to it . " 
