The most significant hip hop feud in decades

May 5, 2024 7:07 AM

Kendrick Lamar and Drake (aka Aubrey Graham), two of the biggest active hip hop artists and former collaborators, are seriously beefing in a major way that hasn't been seen since Tupac vs Biggie. Last October, Drake dropped a track, First Person Shooter, where his collaborator J Cole named the two of them and Kendrick as "the big three". Kendrick, who has a competitive streak, took umbrage at being put on the same level as the other two and replied in Like That "it's just big me". What might've started as a somewhat professional competition has rapidly gone nuclear since Kendrick took shots at Drake's Blackness, fitness as a parent, and masculinity in his track titled "euphoria" and Drake responded with allegations of domestic abuse, infidelity, and cuckoldry in Family Matters. As of the latest, Kendrick has accused Drake of hiding a 2nd child and being a sexual predator of underaged girls.

For those of you with teenage or young adult children, I can almost guarantee they are paying attention to this. Be warned the songs linked do contain liberal use of the n-word, casual misogyny, glorification of violence, etc (aka all the stuff rap critics talk about). Some additional background/details:

• Drake was shamed into recognizing a son he had with an adult entertainer in a diss by Pusha T in 2018
• Drake's initial response to Like That was Push Ups, which had what could be interpreted as a reference to Kendrick's long time fiancé. He rapidly followed up without waiting for a response with Taylor Made Freestyle, which was almost jocular in tone and pulled after Tupac's estate threatened to sue over unauthorized use of AI-generated vocals in his style.
• After releasing euphoria, Kendrick took a page from Drake's book and shot off a 2nd diss track, 6:16 in LA.
• Drake replied with Family Matters within a day, to which Kendrick fired back within minutes with meet the grahams where he implies an unrecognized daughter of Drake's. It's likely both circles are leaking like sieves and had responses prepared.
• The latest from Kendrick, Not Like Us, is deeply personal in its rancor and makes life ruining accusations. The cover image is of Drake's house on Citizen App, filled with labels of child predators. People have been shot for less.

If you, like me, are only casually familiar with the hiphop world, you can delve into the meanings of the songs on Genius. I also only now found an NPR article on this, although it came out before things really escalated and became serious.

posted by ndr (102 comments total)

I appreciate this post and explanation as context for jests I was noticing on social media - thanks!
posted by brainwane at 7:10 AM on May 5 [4 favorites]

Boys, BOYS!

Cut it out!

You’re BOTH just god-awful..
posted by chronkite at 7:12 AM on May 5 [22 favorites]

Ask your doctor or pharmacist if testosterone is right for you.
posted by seanmpuckett at 7:22 AM on May 5 [28 favorites]

I appreciate this post and explanation as context for jests I was noticing on social media - thanks!

Same!
posted by Dip Flash at 7:27 AM on May 5 [1 favorite]

There’s a clarification on Genius that Kendrick has at least three more tracks to release on short order. They’re very dense with allusions, so wow that’s a lot of work prepped - I’d love to know if they were ready for a while or can Kendrick just go full throttle in a few days?!
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 7:29 AM on May 5 [6 favorites]

As of the latest, Kendrick has accused Drake of hiding a 2nd child and being a sexual predator of underaged girls

Drake is leaning into only denying the 2nd child to keep the focus on it, rather than oh, how he was hitting on Millie Bobby Brown at 14.
posted by Your Childhood Pet Rock at 7:32 AM on May 5 [22 favorites]

I don't know how I got sucked into this but meet the grahams is SCATHING. Someone on TikTok said that if you're getting into a rap beef with someone, don't choose a man who literally won a Pulitzer prize for rapping.
posted by kimberussell at 7:34 AM on May 5 [41 favorites]

I listened to Lamar's tracks expecting them to be highly referential, opaque and hard to follow but no he just lays it all out there. I'm sure there were still plenty of references I didn't catch but he went out of his way to make it very clear to the average listener what he's alleging - that Drake and his record label employees repeatedly prey on underaged girls. his diction is also so precise that I could understand what he was saying without subtitles (unusual for me for lyrics).

the allegations are serious. from the little I've looked into it, it sounds like there is public information - drake repeatedly developing relationships with young teenage girls - that suggests the allegations could be true. they're so pointed that I'd be surprised if Lamar doesn't have better evidence that it's actually happening. seems like the kind of thing you'd want to be sure of before claiming it so publicly.

if so, has this been a broken stair situation for awhile where lots of people "know" what he does but choose to work around it because he is too powerful a figure in their circle? and will this be the tipping point where enough attention is finally on the issue that something is done about it? I hope that this doesn't get lost in the framing of "two guys having a rap battle".

or if it's not true, does Drake have a case for defamation?
posted by mosessis at 7:48 AM on May 5 [10 favorites]

The Guardian's been writing about this all week:
Rich guys arguing
Diss tracks ranked
Kendrick Lamar Drake
Most brutal moments
posted by Paul Slade at 7:53 AM on May 5

Even though it was dropped, his OVO associate Baka's sex trafficking charge is a matter of public record
posted by Selena777 at 7:54 AM on May 5

Oh yeah, I don't really listen to rap, I'm 52 and far from the celeb scene and even I knew about Drake being a long time creep.
posted by rikschell at 7:54 AM on May 5 [16 favorites]

You’re BOTH just god-awful..

I could do without Drake, but Lamar is quite good.

Unless you meant in terms of being mature adults in which case I strongly agree.
posted by The Manwich Horror at 8:04 AM on May 5 [4 favorites]

A little background from Defector (gift link): Everybody Hates Drake: A Guide To Millennial Rap’s Midlife Beef Crisis

"This version of rap Wrestlemania is just a bunch of guys pushing 40, hoping to maintain relevance, and it feels like everyone involved can feel their mortality within the confines of their success and are trying to revitalize themselves."
posted by kimberussell at 8:10 AM on May 5 [19 favorites]

"Let's pretend to fight with each other so as to attract attention and sell records! We'll laugh all the way to the bank!"
posted by outgrown_hobnail at 8:11 AM on May 5 [4 favorites]

I AM LOVING THIS.

Kendrick's a GOAT and Drizzy can't compete.

In terms of people chiming in with their "boo hoo who cares" crap, I love Spike Trotman's (Iron Circus owner and artist) Blue Sky posts about people telling her this is dumb to care about or be interested in:

"lol getting a lot of good blocks out of the Drake/Kendrick skeets.

How Dare You Care About That, I Didn't Give You Permission skeets are the Fast Pass to the shadow realm, so by all means, line up, you joyless fucks.

"Don't you know there's a BAD THING going on?!" I obviously do, condescending weirdo. And there literally always has been.

If your requirement for enjoying frivolous, fun things is Nothing Has To be Going Wrong Anywhere Else Ever, you're in for a sad-bastard life.

But we both know it's not, so."
posted by Kitteh at 8:13 AM on May 5 [40 favorites]

I love the way Lamar draws out that r on "tryna strike a chord and its probably a minorrrrrrrrr" -- brutal. That is all I have to say on this matter.
posted by the primroses were over at 8:13 AM on May 5 [44 favorites]

Also that Defector article has a point about Drake and the Quest for Authencity in Hip Hop. Being a biracial kid can be weird when one of your parents is white (I speak from my own history). Drake was raised in the Toronto suburbs by his white Jewish mom and was a child actor. None of which is really street cred in the game so Kendrick isn't wrong to call him out for pretending his life was tougher than it actually was.
posted by Kitteh at 8:19 AM on May 5 [8 favorites]

As far as I'm concerned, Drake was, is, and always will be a poser. He tends to jump on whatever is the current flavor in rap/hip-hop and repackages it in a way that's palatable for Top 40 radio. I think he, via J Cole, tried to gain some street cred by putting himself on Kendrick's level artistically. Guess he wasn't counting on Kendrick basically saying, "Not today, son," and going nuclear on Drake's whole manufactured image.
posted by fuse theorem at 8:19 AM on May 5 [9 favorites]

"Let's pretend to fight with each other so as to attract attention and sell records! We'll laugh all the way to the bank!"

I'm really following this beef closely. Three people in my life, who I've tried to communicate to about why this beef is so entertaining, have had that as their first take. And, I get it, but it's wrong. What's thrilling about this is that, sure, there's some kayfabe involved in entertainers entertaining, but Kendrick is not pulling punches. This whole thing has the feel of a fight that might have been fake but then got undeniably real.

There's something really uncomfortable, just to name one thing, about the song Meet the Grahams. Drake directly addresses different members of Drake's family, repeatedly says he wished drake was dead, and discusses raising girls in a world where sexual predators exist. "Maam, your son's a sick man with sick thoughts. I think ---- like him should die. Him and weinstein should get fucked up in a cell for the rest they life." It's heavy.

There's also the interesting element of moles in these different rappers camps. The art for two of Kendrick's recent diss tracks appears to be pictures of drake's possessions (and prescription sleeping pills and ozempic) widely speculated to be taken without drake's knowledge.
posted by Rinku at 8:24 AM on May 5 [44 favorites]

Mefi favorite Demi Adejuyigbe helps Drake prepare his next response track. [parody]
posted by mbrubeck at 8:25 AM on May 5 [12 favorites]

Rinku is not wrong. This isn't about making money; this is about Kendrick straight up fucking annihilating Drake's image. He's not faking about hating Drake.
posted by Kitteh at 8:26 AM on May 5 [31 favorites]

Another thing that makes this entertaining and rich is that while hating on Drake has never been more entertaining, everybody following this drama knows they owe him a bit of gratitude. Getting new music from Kendrick Lamar is a cool thing, and some of the lines in his songs about this are already legendary. Even if Drake's not the guy who wrote the line "fuck a rap battle, this a lifelong battle with yourself," we owe him something for being part of how that line came into the world. I'm certainly happy I'm not the guy who made Kendrick mad, you know?
posted by Rinku at 8:33 AM on May 5 [9 favorites]

I'm honestly starting to think none of these guys care about cultivating the buddha nature.
posted by The Manwich Horror at 8:37 AM on May 5 [57 favorites]

The Switched on Pop podcast has a pretty good explainer, as well.
posted by signal at 8:44 AM on May 5 [2 favorites]

some of the lines in his songs about this are already legendary.

Seriously. "you not a colleague, you a fuckin' colonizer".

I think one thing that I find genuinely interesting about this is kind of how the rap/hip-hop scene has changed, as well - like, these accusations would not have been effective twenty years ago. But the world has changed, and now people get to come and be hard and still be like "hey, you're a menace to young girls" and that's actually...really fucking positive?
posted by corb at 8:55 AM on May 5 [60 favorites]

Whenever these feuds persist I always presume that the factions realize that their fandoms don't really intersect so the publicity is good for everyone. I don't doubt that this feud is real but the fake feud is a timeless PR stunt. I'm also not too young to remember the hatred and derision that Nickelback generated all while selling millions of albums and filling stadiums.
posted by Depressed Obese Nightmare Man at 9:04 AM on May 5 [5 favorites]

I hate this genre of rap but Kendrick isn't wrong and I've never understood why a sexual predator and pedophile gets a pass. Disgusting.
posted by photoslob at 9:18 AM on May 5

To think we have J Cole to thank for this.

(But I've seriously checked out of Drake when the thing with Millie Bobbie Brown became known - but yeah, a real broken stairs situation there.)
posted by cendawanita at 9:38 AM on May 5 [2 favorites]

Shepherd: "I've always thought of Drake as Your Mom's Favourite Rapper." He also called Drake a soft cozy backpack rapper.
posted by Kitteh at 9:45 AM on May 5 [1 favorite]

People who say this is all kayfabe or publicity stunt or whatever might not see it, but, to people who care about hip-hop (and, whatever else Kendrick is, he is absolutely that), it's a lot bigger than that.

Ebro Darden: If you think this battle is just Kendrick & Drake’s ego, gossip and mudslinging you are not seeing the full picture. The reverberations on how the next generation views and values what is important in being an MC is at stake here.

Drake and Kendrick Lamar is the last great rap beef. Thank God. (The Ringer)
posted by box at 9:45 AM on May 5 [7 favorites]

"Kendrick Lamar methodically dismantling Drake's entire identity and psyche using raps of James Joyce level semantic complexity might give us all the fresh start we need"

Brooks Otterlake on t*itter
posted by thatwhichfalls at 9:47 AM on May 5 [7 favorites]

F.D Signifier has a good video about Drake in the context of evolving hip hop culture. One thing he talks about is that Kendrick blew up around the time Drake was at the peak of his career, and maybe stole some of his thunder. It also sounds like, unlike Kendrick, Drake has struggled to be recognized as "real" hip hop as opposed to pop. Between the two of them, Drake comes off to me as someone who feels he has something to prove, despite all his success.
posted by jomato at 9:57 AM on May 5 [4 favorites]

I have not generally listened to much mainstream rap/hip hop, although I have of course heard of these two men.

I am listening to the songs in the FPP now. Euphoria is very good. KL is definitely creating on a different level than the child predator.
posted by supermedusa at 10:00 AM on May 5 [1 favorite]

Asked my Gen Alpha kids (9 and 11) what they thought about Drake and Kendrick Lamar.

They hadn’t heard of either, though Lil Mosey is apparently on fire right now (for an old school guy at 22) and they started rapping lyrics at me.

What I am most proud of is the interaction with my 11 year old who said - and I kid you not - “Lamar who? Do you mean Lamar Jackson from the Ravens? or Lamar Valley at Yellowstone?”

Because no rap beef well ever be as ice cold as a 10,000 year old glacially carved valley apparently. The kids are alright.
posted by inflatablekiwi at 10:05 AM on May 5 [14 favorites]

My two favorite tweets so far are the one from Shit Academics say that's "I wish I loved my research as much as Kendrick hates Drake" and the one I saw reposted by Michael Harriott that says that "If the new allegations are proven true, Kendrick should get another Pulitzer for investigative journalism."

Also, Kendrick's second diss had, like, a quintuple-meaning word play. Respect.
posted by TwoStride at 10:26 AM on May 5 [20 favorites]

Rinku is not wrong. This isn't about making money; this is about Kendrick straight up fucking annihilating Drake's image.

And the whole thing has legs way, way outside of the usual hiphop audience.

I don't really know anything about hiphop but in the last week I've somehow become ambiently aware of how quietly relieved I am that Kendrick Lamar doesn't know or care that I exist.
posted by mhoye at 10:28 AM on May 5 [15 favorites]

Drake's initial diss tracks are well explained here and here.

The Taylor Made freestyle ends with Drake mocking Kendrick's rep for lyrical complexity, claiming Kendrick would need to come up with a quintiple entendre to respond to how bad Drake got him. The quintuple (or more?) entendre is the title of 6:16 in LA, a reference to various relevant dates and bible verses.
posted by Hume at 10:35 AM on May 5 [2 favorites]

My favorite analysis of this:

"Not since Martin Luther has the world produced such a hater and we can only hope the result will be better this time"
posted by corb at 11:10 AM on May 5 [32 favorites]

Kendrick has at least three more tracks to release on short order. They’re very dense with allusions, so wow that’s a lot of work prepped

Maybe the dude just always hated Drake and has been stewing on it for a while, but I like to think of Kendrick as Batman ready to neutralize the Justice League. Just sitting on a primed vault of absolutely ruthless takedowns of everyone in the industry, just in case he decides they need it.
posted by Phobos the Space Potato at 11:36 AM on May 5 [19 favorites]

Thank you for making this post. I was pondering doing it myself but didn't know if I was up to the task.

I'm glad we're getting some new Kendrick raps out of this but I'm wary of treating it too much as entertainment. The always-thoughtful Mekka Okereke has some sobering comments on Mastodon:

You can't love dogs, and love dog fighting at the same time. Because dog fighting is being entertained by watching two dogs attack each other until one is dead or nearly dead.

Don't go to a dog fight, and then afterwards say, "Oh no! It's a tragedy! I didn't know that one of the dogs could die!"

Yes you did.

It's hard for me to see actual violence coming out of this (notwithstanding state violence if various allegations are true and followed up on) just based on like who Kendrick and Drake are as people, but I think Mekka is more likely to be right than I am.

Mekka also approvingly quotes a lyric from J Cole (who has largely stayed out of all this) that pre-dates the ongoing fracas:

They act like two legends cannot coexist
But I'd never beef with a brother for nothin'
If I smoke a rapper, it's gon' be legit
It won't be for clout, it won't be for fame
It won't be 'cause my shit ain't sellin' the same
It won't be to sell you my latest lil' sneakers
It won't be 'cause some brother slid in my lane

But listening to Kendrick's tracks... I don't know. It doesn't feel like his angle is about clout or fame or sales, if we take his words at face value even a little bit. It feels pretty real and also makes me nervous about treating this whole thing as entertainment. The Ringer post that box linked also makes a really good point about the women involved being used as props, as well as questioning whether either of these men really have the moral authority to be credible here.

On the surface this is all very engaging. Kendrick has certainly taken the gloves off in a way I don't think we've ever seen and it's kind of thrilling to see. But there is definitely an uneasy undercurrent to it for me.
posted by valrus at 12:20 PM on May 5 [13 favorites]

They're not dogs. They're grown men. Did anybody fret over the possibility of Marilyn Manson killing Gregg Alexander? Unless Suge Knight somehow stands to profit from their deaths, I think Drake and Lamar are going to be okay. Drake's career may not fare as well.
posted by The Manwich Horror at 12:47 PM on May 5 [4 favorites]

Basically I agree with the ringer article, but the basic urge to rubberneck at petty gossip (especially after the Pusha T episode had such a wildly entertaining public info reveal) is too compelling to reject. So I'm hooked, and having a great time, but I'm not thrilled about it.

(Also there's a relative dearth of hater songs in the world! Next time I really despise someone, I'm sure "I hate the way that you walk, the way that you talk I hate the way that you dress" will be drifting through my mind.)
posted by grandiloquiet at 12:54 PM on May 5

"Next time I really despise someone, I'm sure "I hate the way that you walk, the way that you talk I hate the way that you dress" will be drifting through my mind.)"

when i heard that line all i could think of was this classic video

"His hair? wack! his gear, wack! his jewelry, wack! his foot stance, wack! the way he talks, wack! the that he doesn't even like to smile, wack! me, i'm tight as fuck!"
posted by atom128 at 1:19 PM on May 5 [6 favorites]

perhaps mastodon will back off its obsession about whether drake likes a thing or not
posted by Rev. Irreverent Revenant at 1:48 PM on May 5 [1 favorite]

I saw a comment somewhere comparing "meet the grahams" to "Hey Jude," but so much more vicious and haunted (so I guess more like John's "How Do You Sleep?" ).

I'm sure the keyfabe of beef, like all artistic expression, lets artists lie and tell the truth at the same time - overstate their case, oversimplify, and hit some highs they might not have hit. And I notice it also seems to be a thing among artists who have "made it" and are maybe coasting a bit - like when you're not a big deal yet, you've got a lot of inspiration in the grounded reality first of being pre-successful, then of struggling with burgeoning success and fame. Having something to work against seems like it bring some amazing things out of people (not that Black American rappers need much extra to work against, given America).

But Kendrick seems to be taking this somewhere bigger - I saw people comparing this to when Hannibal Burris started talking about Cosby in his standup sets, a few years before things started getting more serious for Cosby. Like some beef is just "I'm cool, you're not"; or then there's maybe more intense/personal things, like the ethics of authorship ("you use a ghostwriter!") or appropriation - Kendrick saying Drake's not Black enough to use the n-word, Drake saying Kendrick markets himself to white audiences. Then there's personal/family stuff, like Drake saying Kendrick's not going to marry his wife, or Drake saying Kendrick's a deadbeat dad. But Kendrick saying Drake should be locked up for being a pedophile in "Not Like Us" - like this isn't beef, this is charges.

All of which is to say, that makes it harder for me to feel like this is just art and theater, or to consume it as entertainment. In "Family Matters," Drake dismisses Kendrick as someone who poses as an activist to get fame, whereas Kendrick seems to be behaving like an activist, raising the stakes of the beef to one of fighting injustice. So, like, what next? Are just more songs just going to be enough? If what Kendrick's saying is true, doesn't that mean Drake has to account for things? Is it? Will he?
posted by nightcoast at 1:49 PM on May 5 [11 favorites]

perhaps mastodon will back off its obsession about whether drake likes a thing or not
That is happening to some extent, with Drake being displaced by either Geordi LaForge or Sayori from Doki Doki Literature Club in that meme niche. I'm sure that Drake being more widely known as a creep is part of the reason for that shift.
posted by mscibing at 3:06 PM on May 5 [3 favorites]

There's something really uncomfortable, just to name one thing, about the song Meet the Grahams. Drake directly addresses different members of Drake's family...

The stuff addressed to Drake's son and to the alleged daughter....whew.

In an unsurprising but not great note, there's an undercurrent of homophobia running through some of this, too. You can maybe see it at 4:27 in Kendrick's "euphoria" (includes lyrics), and also from folks like Metro - called out as a lame rapper by Drake in "Family Matters" - who are taking joy in digging up clips of a young Drake playing a closeted gay kid hiding gay porn mags in his locker in an old, strange black and white student film. Metro's going all in on that stuff.
posted by mediareport at 3:30 PM on May 5 [3 favorites]

Report from a senior (grade 7/8) school in Scarborough: kids are siding with Kendrick Lamar.
posted by warriorqueen at 5:04 PM on May 5 [3 favorites]

Drake just dropped again. Its intense:

(1) Claims the Ozempic pic and daughter rumors were leaks he faked, which seems right
(2) Doubles down on Kendrick abusing his wife, first kid being Dave Free's, points out wife hasn't said anything
(3) Responds to the pedophile allegations, not all that convincing IMO but not sure what he can do there
(4) Implies he's done making diss tracks and thinks Kendrick is cooked, can't come back

(1) and (2) hit pretty hard. Not sure about (3) and (4).
posted by Hume at 6:49 PM on May 5

“The Drake Diss Track Tier List” [31:30] —Signified B Sides (F.D. Signifier), 30 April 2024

“I really only wanted Euphoria...” [14:51]—Id., 04 May 2024

Cf. “Drake and the Death of Hip Hop” [1:14:12]—F. D. Signifier, 24 January 2022
posted by ob1quixote at 6:53 PM on May 5 [1 favorite]

Oh, so this is what the SNL skit last night was about. 🧐
posted by kitten kaboodle at 7:13 PM on May 5 [2 favorites]

This has a way to go before it reaches the levels of the most grotesque and cruel diss track of them all; Jarvis Cocker absolutely annihilating a Greek girl he went to art school with
posted by Fiasco da Gama at 8:51 PM on May 5 [19 favorites]

Also Jarvis Cocker, in calling out nonces: mooning Michael Jackson on stage and getting arrested for it.
posted by Fiasco da Gama at 8:56 PM on May 5

the club scene weighs in

the smile on the dj's face
posted by mediareport at 9:16 PM on May 5 [1 favorite]

I reasonably assume it's fairly likely that Drake will get off scot free of most accusations, which usually happens with men, unless someone actually fishes up some evidence/goes to the cops. I'm not sure why that hasn't happened yet if "everyone" knows?

I am also reminded of Hannibal Buress going against Bill Cosby.
posted by jenfullmoon at 10:05 PM on May 5 [1 favorite]

Thank you for making this post. I was pondering doing it myself but didn't know if I was up to the task.

You're welcome! I'm a casual listener and had to get up to speed myself, so hopefully I got everything right.

I do think the seriousness went up a notch during the weekend. My personal read is that Kendrick is definitely personally invested in this while Drake is mostly concerned with managing his image. Drake has made soft overtures to give an out while Kendrick at every turn has doubled down.

Drake is rich and famous, but I'd like to think his influence doesn't extend to the DA's office. Sean Combs (aka Puff Daddy) is currently facing 5 lawsuits - sometimes it just takes one person willing to go public to let others know they're not the only one.
posted by ndr at 10:54 PM on May 5 [1 favorite]

Drake just dropped again.

Gotta do it, so: malaysiamentioneddotjpg
posted by cendawanita at 11:47 PM on May 5 [1 favorite]

I don’t know enough about the rap world to be more than just an occasional listener but I am wondering if all this is to take the attention off of the Diddy news….and/or the Diddy JayZ beef that was brewing for a bit.
posted by pearlybob at 2:46 AM on May 6 [1 favorite]

Kendrick: writes a diss track in a few hours

Drake: asks his friends to help him write a diss track because that man has never written any of his material without many writers and it takes all weekend

Basically the temperature elsewhere on the Internet is that the new Drake diss track is weak sauce because being a possible pedo is worse than mocking Kendrick for apparently being a CSA (childhood sexual assault) survivor.
posted by Kitteh at 4:08 AM on May 6 [2 favorites]

Via TikTok:

Don't
Rap
Against
Kendrick
Ever
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 6:10 AM on May 6 [8 favorites]

(1) Claims the Ozempic pic and daughter rumors were leaks he faked, which seems right

Drake: “We gave you false information” .
Also Drake: “Whoever gave you false information is a clown”.

Pretty weak.
posted by Pendragon at 7:15 AM on May 6 [4 favorites]

>Drake: asks his friends to help him write a diss track because that man has never written any of his material without many writers and it takes all weekend

I truly hate to defend Drake, but his song uses an Aretha Franklin sample so they probably had to wait for the rights to clear before releasing it.
posted by Pitachu at 7:19 AM on May 6

waiting for rights to clear is also cowardly (and not at all common - see every song that had different samples between the single and the album release)
posted by sagc at 7:35 AM on May 6 [5 favorites]

I am wondering if all this is to take the attention off of the Diddy news

How would that work exactly?
posted by ultraviolet catastrophe at 8:52 AM on May 6 [1 favorite]

Listen, if you say _____ is a distraction from something else, you get to appear beyond _____ and anyone concerned with it. I don't make the rules.
posted by Selena777 at 9:02 AM on May 6

Kendrick's latest song on YouTube shows an image of Drake's house, including address, in the style of a sex offender registry. Drake's latest song drop says he's too famous to be a pedophile. This is past the point of doing it for attention. Someone is going to jail.
posted by tofu_crouton at 9:03 AM on May 6 [2 favorites]

'The Heart Part 6' is a weird song.

The lyrics seem pretty tossed-off and half-ass, but then it has a prominent sample and talks about, like, fourth-dimensional-chess shit like planting fake stories.

I don't think it's going to win over anyone who isn't already in the tank for Drake, but what do I know?
posted by box at 9:27 AM on May 6

Kendrick's next song will start with summaries of every recurring dream Drake has ever had and then move on to a listing of the precise weights of all Drake's internal organs as of 8am EST today.
The song after that will just be surface noise with him mockingly challenging Drake with "Think of a number between 1 and 1000!" and getting it right every time.
posted by thatwhichfalls at 9:47 AM on May 6 [17 favorites]

I'm a little annoyed that if Kendrick knew this stuff before, why he waited until there was an irrelevant teasing beef to use it to raise the stakes. And if he didn't know it before, then someone's been leaking a whole lot of really dark shit really really fast (that they also knew and sat on).

On the OTHER hand, it might take someone like Kendrick to actually make charges like this stick, by being the accusing voice that can't be bought off by money or threats. So if there is a deep history of bad Drake behaviour, Kendrick may be getting a whole lot of me too emails and setting himself up to be the accidental avenger.

It's all up in the air and a little bit gross, but if a foolish boast eventually results in a sex offender getting pulled off the streets (and off the air) I think that's a net positive.
posted by seanmpuckett at 10:10 AM on May 6 [1 favorite]

There's been rumours about Drake for a while, but as you know, folks who have a lotta money can deflect attention from what they do. Either Kendrick has got the real dirt from someone in Drizzy's camp or elsewhere, or he's fleshing out the extant rumors to make them very public.
posted by Kitteh at 10:29 AM on May 6 [2 favorites]

I didn't know anything about rumors Drake was an abuser. So he has definitely accomplished that.
posted by The Manwich Horror at 12:52 PM on May 6

Drake, 36, defends friendship with Millie Bobby Brown, 19, in new song lyrics (People, 2023)

Disturbing video has surfaced of Drake kissing a 17-year-old at a concert (Esquire, 2019)

Drake dating teenager, officially enters creepy old man phase (Vice, 2018)

Kylie Jenner surprised by Drake at Sweet 16 party (E!, 2013--the surprise is that Kylie's older sister Kim booked Drake, 27, to perform at the party, though rumors of them dating have been around for years, and he called her his side-piece in a song)

damn drake is next level. he really played the long game FOR YEARS by dming underage girls, rapping about high school girls being hot, and even bringing underage girls on stage, all to trick Kendrick into thinking drake’s a pedophile!!! chess not checkers from the 🐐🐐🐐!!!!!! (Twitter)
posted by box at 1:21 PM on May 6 [9 favorites]

metro, having been told by drake to shut up and make beats, has apparently released a disstrumental, and saying that whoever writes the best bars gets a brand new beat from him

and now it's going wild on tiktok, and as far as i know there are now french and japanese rappers getting in on the game
posted by i used to be someone else at 1:46 PM on May 6 [4 favorites]

There’s a hypocrisy angle one could take regarding Kendrick calling out members of Drake’s entourage with trafficking convictions. Not that Kendrick is known for glorifying pimping personally but plenty of his rap heroes did and he’s doing the whole bit about defending Pac’s honor when Pac… you know.

But that last Drake response is pretty weird, right? The “oh you got molested” bit (not actually what Kendrick says in that song btw)? The whole downcast tone of it?
posted by atoxyl at 2:24 PM on May 6

I do have a sense that Kendrick is mostly running on general “Drake is creepy” rumors - which there are plenty of - while making it sound like he has the secret dirt on Drake being R. Kelly. But the expectation that diss tracks should be based on some crazy scoop feels pretty recent/downstream of the previous Drake beefs. As far as rapping Kendrick (of course) is doing better here, though Drake has a few good lines.
posted by atoxyl at 2:28 PM on May 6

It sucks that Drake being accused of rape in 2019 is something I learned from a gossip site's coverage of this beef, bc there are too many rapists to keep track of. Once I learned that, it stopped being "ooh funny salacious wow" and now I'm just mad that all the coverage of it is the way it is. He's a rapist. That's what's important. He should admit what he did and face consequences.
posted by pelvicsorcery at 7:02 PM on May 6 [1 favorite]

I saw a post floating around online saying that it must be very demoralizing to be Drake, to work your ass off on producing Family Matters, to put together a thoughtful and elaborate music video, and to have all the oxygen sucked out of the room in less than an hour because the guy you're feuding with not only anticipated you but doubled down with a brutal attack on your family, followed immediately by a total club banger calling you a pedophile.

Not that I'm sympathetic. Anything that makes Drake unhappy makes me happy. But I have to imagine that the blow to his morale is just crippling.
posted by Tom Hanks Cannot Be Trusted at 4:11 AM on May 7 [3 favorites]

The Wikipedia page for the feud is using the same template they use for ongoing wars.
posted by signal at 7:13 AM on May 7 [6 favorites]

the blow to his morale

I see what you did there
posted by taz at 7:18 AM on May 7 [2 favorites]

macklemore releases hind's hall, focused on gaza and american imperialism, and towards the end sends a few strays drake's way

drake is taking more hits than a nhtsa crash test dummy
posted by i used to be someone else at 7:33 AM on May 7 [6 favorites]

Possibly related shooting (or possibly not anything at all--it's too early to really know).
posted by sardonyx at 7:57 AM on May 7 [1 favorite]

Macklemore just released a song that compares the Kendrick/Drake beef to goddamn Israel/Palestine, and this is, somehow, only the second most cringeworthy interaction between him and Kendrick.
posted by box at 9:29 AM on May 7

be nice if both drake and kendrick would get together for fifteen seconds to release a track that just says "shut up, dude"
posted by seanmpuckett at 9:44 AM on May 7

“Let's talk about Drake,” Ryan Broderick, Garbage Day, 06 May 2024
posted by ob1quixote at 9:47 AM on May 7

The Manwich Horror : They're not dogs. They're grown men. Did anybody fret over the possibility of Marilyn Manson killing Gregg Alexander? Unless Suge Knight somehow stands to profit from their deaths, I think Drake and Lamar are going to be okay. Drake's career may not fare as well.

As sardonyx linked, we have a violent drive-by shooting on Drake's property now. I'd ask that everyone stop giving this fire oxygen, but I might be called a "joyless fuck" :(

CTV News coverage of police presser
posted by Popular Ethics at 10:04 AM on May 7 [2 favorites]

It feels pretty disingenuous to describe Macklemore's track as "comparing Israel/Palestine to Kendrick/Drake." It's a staunchly pro-Palestine song that centers on the injustice of cops assaulting student protestors, the media refusing to cover the situation honestly, and politicians spinning the narrative in genocidal ways. Its only reference to this feud is a tossed-off line like "Who the fuck cares what Drake's gonna say next when America's sliding towards genocidal fascism?"

Like, it's as wild to me that I'm defending Macklemore in 2024 as it is to you, but "Hind's Hall" sounds like a dude who gives an actual fuck about Palestine, and who doesn't have it in him to give even a half-hearted fuck about a rap feud atm. Personally, I find the rap feud a nice lighterhearted break from the rest of 2024, but I was taken aback by the fact that, of all the "socially conscious" songwriters we have out there, it was fucking Macklemore who wrote a thing about the Columbia protests that didn't draw a single false equivocation. And his donating the proceeds to UNRWA is pretty great too. Props.
posted by Tom Hanks Cannot Be Trusted at 11:56 AM on May 7 [41 favorites]

Mod note: Hey, this post has been added to the sidebar and Best Of blog!
posted by Brandon Blatcher (staff) at 6:38 AM on May 8 [1 favorite]

Tom Morello on Twitter:

Honestly @macklemore’s “Hind’s Hall” is the most Rage Against The Machine song since Rage Against The Machine.

posted by Lexica at 10:15 AM on May 8 [9 favorites]

Morello should do a enRageified remix.
Great song.
posted by signal at 12:24 PM on May 8

Joe Biden disses Donald Trump using Kendrick Lamar 'Euphoria' (Billboard)
posted by box at 2:31 PM on May 8 [1 favorite]

Oof. Real "Pokemon Go to the Polls" energy.
posted by The Manwich Horror at 2:33 PM on May 8 [6 favorites]

Silly as that is, it says something that the White House wants to tie itself to Lamar, and tie Trump to Drake.
posted by Dip Flash at 2:44 PM on May 8 [1 favorite]

Todd in the Shadows on Drake/Kendrick
posted by box at 3:43 PM on May 8 [9 favorites]

Silly as that is, it says something that the White House wants to tie itself to Lamar, and tie Trump to Drake.

Awkward trivia I saw this week then that it was Drake who signed on to Artists for Ceasefire early on and it's Kendrick who's on record defended Pharrell (I didn't confirm on what, though where I saw the statement it's known that Pharell fundraised for the IDF).
posted by cendawanita at 3:45 PM on May 8 [1 favorite]

The Todd In The Shadows video is pretty intense. He's fucking over it.
posted by hippybear at 3:48 PM on May 8 [3 favorites]

It’s not a rap beef. It’s a cultural reckoning. (The Atlantic)
posted by box at 5:18 PM on May 9

> As sardonyx linked, we have a violent drive-by shooting on Drake's property now. I'd ask that everyone stop giving this fire oxygen, but I might be called a "joyless fuck" :(

Odds are this has more to do with one of Drake’s people shooting up CashXO’s house a couple weeks back.

Drake’s desperation for street cred over the past decade has led to him bringing on basically anyone who will boost his ego, regardless of how involved they still are with gang activity. (See: Baka, formerly of sex trafficking.)
posted by Molten Berle at 7:19 PM on May 10 [4 favorites]

Drake is a middle class kid who raps as a street thug who is desperate to have that legitimacy. Or that's what at least three podcasts have told me in the past week. Their agreement leads me to believe this is the situation.
posted by hippybear at 7:48 PM on May 10 [3 favorites]

At this point I have watched/listened to probably 15 different summaries of this from different sources. All of them seem to say that Lamar has won and Drake might need to rethink his life. Not exaggerating with that last bit. Is there more that others have gleaned?
posted by hippybear at 4:46 PM on May 11

On the Cover: Drake (a GQ profile from 2012):

Staring into the fire, he tells me he’s part of a new generation of rappers, one that is less defined by aggression and street credibility. "Rap now is just being young and fly and having your shit together," he says. "The mood of rap has changed."

...

When I ask about the strange square above the bed, he grabs a remote, and a projection system emerges from the ceiling. Neato, I say.

"Would I have you already?" he asks. "Are you sleeping with me?"

Time to go!

It’s a hypothetical question (I think), but Drake, being Drake, still wants an answer: "We had wine and dinner by the pool, I brought you inside, I brought the projector down; are you or are you not sleeping with me?"

posted by box at 9:54 AM on May 13 [1 favorite]

I found this episode of Today Explained with Charles Holmes of The Ringer to be illuminating and informative.
posted by mmascolino at 4:43 PM on May 13

Ha, when Baltimore mayor Brandon Scott handily won his primary last night, against former mayor Sheila Dixon whose campaign was pushed and largely bankrolled by conservative Sinclair broadcasting exec David Smith and his allies, this happened:

He walked on stage to “They Not Like Us,” a diss track recently released by Kendrick Lamar, as supporters screamed in delight.
posted by mediareport at 10:18 AM on May 15 [1 favorite]