Rap followers had been on the sting of their seats this weekend as two of the style’s largest stars continued to impress each other with allegations of pedophilia, home abuse, infidelity and harbouring secret youngsters.
The newest instalment of the rap beef between Drake and Kendrick Lamar noticed the Toronto-born artist launch his fourth diss observe in opposition to Lamar, entitled The Heart Part 6, on Sunday.
The moody observe is over 5 minutes lengthy and makes an attempt to dispute a number of claims made by Lamar, 36, in his earlier raps focusing on Drake, 37. Much of the response sees Drake deny grooming underage women for intercourse, an allegation that has adopted the rapper for years now.
Drake referred to as Lamar’s claims that he’s a pedophile “the s—t I expected.”
“I never been with no one underage, but now I understand why this the angle that you really mess with,” Drake raps. “Just for clarity, I feel disgusted, I’m too respected / If I was f—ing young girls, I promise I’d have been arrested / I’m way too famous for this s—t you just suggested.”
In the tune, Drake addresses his controversial friendship with Stranger Things actor Millie Bobby Brown, who was 14 years outdated when she met the rapper. In 2018, Brown (now 20) stated she and Drake texted usually and that he usually provided her profession and life recommendation.
“Millie Bobby Browns, I’d never look twice at no teenager,” Drake defends himself within the new diss observe.
(Rap beef apart, Drake has by no means been formally accused of pedophilia.)
He additionally fired again at Lamar’s allegations that he’s been hiding an 11-year-old daughter.
The declare, made in Lamar’s tune Meet the Grahams, got here as a shock to Drake’s core fanbase, who speculated whether or not the rapper might have one other little one away from the general public eye, much like his son Adonis. After a 2018 rap beef with rapper Pusha T, Drake confirmed he had a son who was born the yr prior.
As for Lamar’s insistence that Drake has one other little one, the rapper stated in The Heart Part 6 that he and his group “fed” Lamar dangerous info.
“We plotted for a week and then we fed you the information / A daughter that’s eleven years old, I bet he takes it,” Drake raps. “We thought about giving a fake name or a destination / But you so thirsty, you not concerned with investigation.”
So far, there’s been 9 tracks launched within the ongoing feud between Drake and Lamar — although Drake appeared to indicate he’s rising bored with their backwards and forwards, no matter how enthusiastic their collective fanbases have been.
“I don’t wanna diss you anymore, this really got me second-guessing,” Drake raps on The Heart Part 6, later including, “I’m not gonna lie, this s— t was some good exercise. It’s good to get out, get the pen working.”
Regardless, the meat has received each rappers placement on this week’s Hot 100 music charts. Want to know the entire story? Read on for an intensive clarification of what’s occurring.
Drake and Kendrick Lamar’s rap beef, defined
It’s been no-holds-barred (or reasonably, no holds bars) between Drake and Lamar since late March, however the rappers have been arguing since even earlier than then, starting in 2013 when Lamar rapped on Big Sean’s Control a couple of need to “murder” Drake and different well-known rappers.
Across their quite a few diss tracks in current months, the rappers have repeatedly doubled down on their allegations in opposition to each other, with arguments spanning from comparisons of artistry to unlawful behaviour.
Fans of each Drake and Lamar have been taking sides and eagerly dissecting and meme-ifying each verse, beat and intelligent (or not-so-clever) quip.
Like That — Future, Metro Boomin, and Kendrick Lamar
The rap beef’s first instalment got here on March 22, when Lamar — alongside rapper Future and producer Metro Boomin — launched Like That.
Over a flashy, synthesizer drumbeat, Lamar disavowed rap’s “Big Three,” a typical consensus that he, Drake and J. Cole are one of the best rappers within the music sport.
Lamar, a Pulitzer Prize winner, slammed the Big Three, declaring as an alternative “it’s only me.”
“Fore all your dogs gettin’ buried / That’s a K with all these nines, he gon’ see Pet Sematary,” Lamar raps, referencing Drake’s 2023 album For All the Dogs.
Lamar in contrast himself to Prince and Drake to Michael Jackson, boasting, “Prince outlived Mike Jack.”
Push Ups — Drake
Three weeks after the discharge of Like That, Drake hit again at Lamar with the discharge of Push Ups on April 13.
The tune initially got here as a leak however was later launched to streaming platforms.
In Push Ups, Drake, who’s probably the most streamed rapper on the planet, pokes enjoyable at Lamar’s industrial success working with common artists like Maroon 5 and Taylor Swift.
“Maroon 5 need a verse, you better make it witty / Then we need a verse for the Swifties,” Drake chides. “You ain’t in no big three, SZA got you wiped down / Travis got you wiped down, Savage got you wiped down.”
Drake additionally took purpose at rapper Rick Ross, who responded with a diss of his personal.
Taylor Made Freestyle — Drake
Days after Push Ups, Drake launched Taylor Made Freestyle on April 19.
The tune has since been taken down, because it featured A.I.-generated voices of Tupac Shakur and Snoop Dogg. Shakur’s property threatened to sue Drake over the tune.
Drake rapped alongside the A.I. voices and accused Lamar of ready to answer Push Ups over fears of competing with Taylor Swift’s album launch for The Tortured Poets Department.
“Now we gotta wait a f—ing week cause Taylor Swift is your new top, and if you boutta drop, she gotta approve,” Drake raps. “This girl really ’bout to make you act like you not in a feud / She tailor-made your schedule with Ant, you out of the loop.”
Snoop Dogg, 52, didn’t publicly threaten authorized motion, and appeared principally unbothered.
“They did what? When? How? Are you sure?” Snoop requested in a video posted to social media. “I’m going back to bed. Goodnight.”
Euphoria — Kendrick Lamar
Fans didn’t have to attend lengthy for Lamar’s second diss, which arrived on April 30.
Named Euphoria after the HBO present Drake produces, Lamar’s verses slammed Drake’s use of A.I. and his rap artistry normally, calling him a “scam artist.”
But Lamar’s jabs weren’t solely about Drake’s profession. The rapper took purpose at Drake’s parenting, private life, allegations of cosmetic surgery and Drake’s racial identification.
“How many more fairytale stories about your life ’til we’ve had enough? How many more Black features ’til you finally feel that you’re Black enough?” Lamar prods.
6:16 in LA — Kendrick Lamar
Just as Drake did, Lamar once more dissed his opponent earlier than they may reply.
6:16 in LA was launched on Friday, with “6:16” seemingly a reference to June 16, Father’s Day.
In the tune, Lamar slams Drake’s report label, OVO, and referred to as the rapper a “bully.”
“Have you ever thought that OVO is workin’ for me?” Lamar warns. “Fake bully, I hate bullies, you must be a terrible person / Everyone inside your team is whispering that you deserve it.”
The tune was produced by Jack Antonoff, the acclaimed music producer and longtime collaborator of Taylor Swift.
“Ain’t no brownie points for beating your chest, harassin’ Ant / F—in’ with good people make good people go to bat,” Lamar raps in reference to Antonoff.
Family Matters — Drake
Only hours after Lamar’s 6:16 in LA drop, Drake launched Family Matters, a beat-switching, seven-minute observe that turned the warmth up on Drake’s allegations in opposition to Lamar.
In the tune, Drake means that Lamar’s youngsters, shared with fiancé Whitney Alford, are literally fathered by Lamar’s longtime inventive associate Dave Free.
Drake additionally accused Lamar of home abuse in opposition to Alford.
“When you put your hands on your girl, is it self-defence ’cause she’s bigger than you?” he raps.
He later provides, “There’s nowhere to hide, there’s nowhere to hide, you know what I mean / They hired a crisis management team to clean up the fact that you beat on your queen.”
(Lamar has by no means been formally accused of home violence. Alford has not commented on the rap beef publicly.)
Drake additionally accused Lamar of pushing Shakur’s property to sue him over Taylor Made Freestyle.
Meet the Grahams — Kendrick Lamar
In his retaliation, launched 20 minutes after Family Matters, Lamar accused Drake of being hooked on playing, intercourse, medicine and alcohol.
Lamar stated Drake was flawed to deliver his household into their feud. In the tune, he takes purpose at Drake’s family and raps that he was sorry for Drake’s son, Adonis.
Meet the Grahams can be the place Lamar accuses Drake of getting a secret daughter.
“He a narcissist, misogynist, living inside his songs / Try destroy families rather than takin’ care of his own / Should be teaching you timetables or watching Frozen with you / Or at your 11th birthday singing poems with you,” Lamar raps. “It’s not your fault that he’s hiding another child.”
“A child should never be compromised and he keeping his child around them / And we gotta raise our daughters knowing there’s predators like him lurking,” Lamar continues. “I’m looking to shoot through any pervert that lives, keep the family safe.”
On Instagram, Drake denied having a daughter and wrote, “Nahhhh hold on can someone find my hidden daughter pls and send her to me…these guys are in shambles.”
Not Like Us — Kendrick Lamar
Hours after the discharge of Meet the Grahams, Lamar additionally dropped Not Like Us on Saturday.
The observe sees Lamar double down on a lot of his accusations towards Drake.
“Say, Drake, I hear you like ’em young / You better not ever go to cell block one,” Lamar raps, including, “Certified Lover Boy, certified pedophiles…Tryna strike a chord and it’s probably A minor.”
Lamar referred to as Drake a “colonizer” and attributed his success to the various different rappers Drake has labored with.
The Heart Part 6 — Drake
Even the title of Drake’s newest diss, The Heart Part 6, takes purpose at Lamar, who has an ongoing five-part collection of songs beneath the identical title. Lamar launched The Heart, Part 1 in 2010 forward of his mixtape Overly Dedicated.
As effectively as denying the existence of a daughter, Drake controversially references Lamar being molested as a toddler.
“My mom came over today and I was like, ‘Mother I, mother I, mother I … / Wait a second, that’s that one record where you say you got molested,” Drake raps. “I just made the whole connection / This about to get so depressing / This is trauma from your own confessions.”
The line is in reference to Lamar’s tune Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, during which Lamar says his mom was sexually abused. The tune, nonetheless, maintains that Lamar wasn’t molested as a toddler, and he has by no means publicly stated in any other case.
BBL Drizzy — Metro Boomin
On April 13’s Push Ups, Drake raps, “Metro, shut your ho a— up and make some drums.”
In what’s since grow to be a fan favorite launch, Metro on Sunday dropped a beat entitled BBL Drizzy. With a cheery 150 beats per minute (BPM) on the observe, a singer passionately belts, “I’m thicker than a Snicker … These yams deserve a trophy.”
The beat is a diss by itself, poking enjoyable at a well-liked hearsay that Drake (nickname Drizzy) had a Brazilian butt elevate (BBL).
Metro inspired his followers to rap over the beat he created, even promoting that the creator of the “best verse” would obtain a complementary beat from Metro for his or her private use. Since the drop, rap followers have used the observe to diss Drake themselves in a number of languages.
The drop got here hours forward of Drake’s The Heart Part 6.
The fallout
Fans of each rappers are both eagerly awaiting yet one more diss observe or are hopeful that the longstanding feud will come to an inevitable, messy finish.
J. Cole, a member of the so-called “Big Three,” appears to be hoping for the latter. Though Cole initially struck again at Lamar after the discharge of Like That, the rapper has since backed down and apologized.
During April’s Dreamville Fest in Raleigh, N.C., Cole admitted he isn’t “proud” of his personal diss observe, 7 Minute Drill. Cole stated releasing the tune was a “lame” and “goofy” factor to do.
Cole has since eliminated 7 Minute Drill from streaming.
But for Drake and Lamar, in addition to their devoted followers, the meat continues. As followers look forward to extra music from the rappers, ought to it come, the respective camps backing Drake and Lamar have taken to trolling each other.
Lamar’s admirers are even tagging Drake’s Toronto Bridle Path house on Google Maps with remarks about pedophilia and ghost writing.
Despite the severity of a number of the allegations made by Drake and Lamar, rap followers have poked enjoyable on the feud on-line with an ever-growing move of jokes and memes — and it doesn’t appear to be it should finish any time quickly.
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If you or somebody you understand is experiencing abuse or is concerned in an abusive scenario, please go to the Canadian Resource Centre for Victims of Crime for assist. They are additionally reachable toll-free at 1-877-232-2610.
