“Purple Hearts” is the final track on the first disc and the ninth track overall from Kendrick Lamar’s fifth and final studio album with Top Dawg Entertainment, Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers.

The title alludes to the Purple Heart, a military decoration awarded by the US armed forces to those who are wounded, injured, or killed in battle.

The instrumental employs heavy drums and synth elements which serve as a lush foundation back-dropping lyrics about love, spirituality, and drugs: the title may also be a subtle allusion to lean, otherwise known as “purple drank” or liquid codeine. It can also point to purple marks or bruises, which are often left on the skin as a consequence of an injury in a fight or an accident. In the album’s context, this could represent a couple’s attempt to heal after the toxic fight depicted on the previous track, “We Cry Together.”