Kendrick Lamar did, in fact, go “Back To Back” as promised and dropped another Drake diss, “6:16 In LA,” on Friday morning (May 3) three days after dropping “euphoria.” Moreover, this diss is a much more focused and specific takedown of the 6ix God rather than the multi-faceted and expansive set of points made on the first diss track. This time around, K.Dot is focusing on how much of his opponent’s OVO camp is supposedly against him, willing to give up info and only staying loyal because of money. Furthermore, he achieves this through lines like, “Have you ever thought that OVO was working for me?,” “Know the wires in your circle should puzzle you,” “If you were street smart, then you would’ve caught that your entourage is only to hustle you.”
Of course, as Kendrick Lamar fans tend to do, they will probably peel back a lot of other possible meanings and references in many of these bars in the next few days, so expect even more stuff to come out from both “6:16 In LA” and “euphoria.” But the points made here are very clear. On the other hand, Drake fans are already calling into question the Compton MC’s lyricism, specifically pointing to battle rap lines that he allegedly stole. But commonly repeated lines and metaphor openings that are peppered across The Boy’s catalog as well won’t be enough to change the narrative, or at least, that’s what Kendrick argues on this new song.
Elsewhere, people are already going wild with their reactions to “6:16 In LA.” Many of the bars here could relate to many references on previous disses, such as the Gunna bar on “euphoria” and Kendrick Lamar’s allusions to Drake’s bodyguard Chubbs. Still, it’s clear to see that people are really running with the idea that the Toronto collective is not as tight-knit as they would have you believe, which is probably exactly what Kendrick wanted to paint with his bars. Whether it’s true or not, they are some heavy claims to tackle.
Meanwhile, everyone’s now patiently waiting to see what Drake could offer in response to Kendrick Lamar. They’ve teased some really damaging ammunition for another round, and it seems like the former TDE lyricist is calling Aubrey’s bluff here. It’s not impossible for him to bounce back with a strong retort, and that might just lock them in a war for life. Regardless, it’s all been a pretty interesting spat to witness, and one that will go down in the history books no matter what.
Debate is raging heavily online over the Drake and Kendrick Lamar beef, especially now that the latter went back to back and dropped another diss on Friday morning (May 3). Both fanbases are going wild for their fav, with some going on a slippery slope by trying to discredit some of the bars on the first K.Dot diss, “euphoria.” For example, folks pulled up some videos of various rap battles in which competitors use the “I hate” repetition from the song’s refrain, the “park your son” bar, and the YNW Melly bar. While this is not necessarily an invalid critique, someone should make a compilation of all the “Interscope (in the scope) Aftermath” MJ, and Whitney Houston Bodyguard bars that rappers have spit over the years, all of which land on “Push Ups.”
Furthermore, we don’t say that to hate on Drake, but to point out that this is a flawed argument no matter which way you frame it. His previous ghostwriting claims don’t matter either, as Kendrick Lamar also faced some since-debunked ghostwriting rumors amid this beef. If you hold hip-hop up to unrealistic originality standards in the art of wordplay, you would deprive many listeners of their first time hearing classic bars on more popular records. The ghostwriting issue occurs most frequently when you’re not backing up your homages with striking idiosyncrasy on your other bars, or when you pay them too often in succession.
Of course, we’re sure that Drake will probably have at least one or two bars on whatever he cooks up next that are tributes or references to other bars, or are just more common metaphors or similes than one would think. None of them will discredit him from the beef, and Kendrick Lamar jabbing him for the same reason would fall equally as flat. All that being said, there is still valid critique to be made about “euphoria” and its lyrical content. So if you’re an OVO soldier, don’t give up: you might still get naysayers on your side.
Meanwhile, as the rest of the hip-hop world continues to debate “euphoria,” the brand new diss, and how this beef has progressed so far, we can only guess as to whether there’s another round. Will there be a big revelation like both MCs have teased and warned the other about? Or is this purely a lyrical battle? We’ll see what we see when the smoke clears.
The war between Drake and Kendrick Lamar is formally entering its second round following the release of the latter’s response track, “euphoria.” After the kick-off “Like That” and Drizzy’s responses, “Push Ups” and “Taylor Made Freestyle,” we already have a good idea of the main angles that each MC is taking against their opponent. As for the OVO camp, one of the most notable, new, and incendiary moments was when he claimed that K.Dot’s wife, Whitney Alford, cheated on him with his bodyguard, or multiple. While Kendrick claimed this was a fake attempt to stir up controversy on “euphoria,” fans went back into the Toronto rapper’s catalog and discovered another set of bars that could suggest this.
“Bodyguards don’t look like Kevin Costner, you tweaking / Just pulled up to Whitney Houston, Texas for the evening,” Drake raps on the 2020 DJ Khaled collab, “POPSTAR.” Given that it’s set up in a similar way to his mention of Whitney on “Push Ups” (“I be with some bodyguards like Whitney“), fans wonder whether this also alluded to that fact. However, considering the “POPSTAR” line previous to this, it’s also possible that the real depth behind this bar is just how much Aubrey decided to do his due research on The Bodyguard. It’s the 1992 film with Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston, for which her hit Dolly Parton cover “I Will Always Love You” was released, partly produced by someone who The Boy mentions on the previous line on “POPSTAR”: “If we talking joints, it’s just me and David Foster.”
As such, there’s not a whole lot here to connect this to Drake’s taunting of Kendrick Lamar on “Push Ups,” and for the record, it’s something that he’ll likely double down on with whatever he’s cooking up next. But let’s wear the tinfoil hats for a second: maybe he’s insinuating that the real dangers as to Kendrick and Whitney’s relationship aren’t “Kevin Costners” (or the white women that the Compton lyricist admitted to cheating on his partner with years before this beef), but rather the bodyguards in their own circle. The 6ix God could even have insinuated that he himself was with Whitney on “POPSTAR,” à la the “Hit ‘Em Up” intro. If you thought that was a reach, just wait until you hear this next conspiracy theory.
Here are the next bars on “POPSTAR” after this “Whitney Houston, Texas” mention: “They tell the same story so much, they start to believe it / The ones that start like, ‘Drizzy’s s**t was cool, but we even.’” Might Drake be referencing Kendrick Lamar’s refusal to believe the other alleged side of this cheating story? Is the last part of these bars alluding to the artistic competition between the two, with him calling it a lie for Mr. Morale to consider him an equal and not a superior? Maybe… maybe not… but isn’t that the fun part about breaking down bars, especially in a rap beef? If nothing else, let’s give the Canadian superstar some credit for the Bodyguard wordplay, and let’s see what else they’ve both got in store.
DJ Akademiks is easily one of the biggest Drake defenders on the internet. Overall, whenever Drake has found himself in a feud, you can count on Ak to be on his side. Throughout this Kendrick Lamar spat, Ak has remained a proponent of Drizzy’s greatness. In fact, every single day, Ak has put Kendrick on the clock for a response. Well, yesterday, Lamar gave us that response with a 6-minute track called “Euphoria.” Although some were expecting jazz instrumentals and something light, Lamar ended up giving fans a scathing track with three beat switches.
Throughout the song, Kendrick eviscerated Drake for the way he talks, acts, and even dresses. Furthermore, he perpetuated numerous narratives that are already out there about Drake. However, the big difference here is that Kendrick did it in a unique way. At the start of the day, Akademiks was pretty impressed by Kendrick’s response. As the day went by, Ak ended up changing his tune and continued to profess how Drake is on top. In the clip below, DJ Akademiks took it a step further and began mocking Lamar for his flow.
Akademiks specifically went after the first part of the song where Kendrick decides to take things lightly. Furthermore, Akademiks went on to compare Kendrick to Carlton Banks from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Of course, this is completely avoiding the next five minutes of the song where Kendrick ups the energy and escalates the bars with each verse. The bias here is clear, but that is what fans were expecting from Ak, and he delivered.
Let us know what you think of DJ Akademiks and his comments pertaining to this diss track, in the comments section down below. Do you believe that he is doing way too much to defend Drake? Do you agree that Kendrick’s response was wack? Additionally, stay tuned to HNHH for the latest news and updates from around the music world. We will continue to keep you informed on all of your favorite artists and their upcoming projects.
Folks, welcome to Round Two of hip-hop’s coup d’état against Drake… or was it the true king asserting his dominance all along against the Toronto challenger? In this corner, we have Drizzy, who launched two diss tracks, took down one of them, is still on top of the game commercially, and has been eagerly waiting for Kendrick Lamar to clap back with a “quintuple entendre or something.” And in this corner, we have K. Dot, who kicked this current fight off in the first place and reaped what he sowed today with his “Euphoria” response.
As expected, Kendrick Lamar’s song was explosive on impact, leading to many wild reactions, interpretations, theories, and predictions. Not everyone’s a fan, of course, but one thing is definitely clear: Drake got the smoke he wanted, and the ball is back in his court. Across this new diss track’s six-and-a-half-minute runtime, we believe there are six specific sets of bars that the 6ix God must address.
I Pray They My Real Friends, If Not, I’m YNW Melly
First, let’s start off with Kendrick Lamar addressing “First Person Shooter,” the Drake and J. Cole collab that seems to have provoked the “Like That” diss. There’s a “feature request” line that suggests that K.Dot actually turned down a guest spot with Drake. Kendrick then insinuates that Drizzy didn’t want to work with him after his “Control” verse because his feelings were hurt, and he clarifies that he doesn’t have a problem with Drake and Cole working together… in theory. While he “loves them to death,” the former TDE lyricist suggests that if Aubrey, Cole, or both aimed to belittle Kendrick or take him down with their collab, this changes the dynamic.
This culminates with the line: “There’s no accent you can sell me / Yeah, Cole and Aubrey know I’m a selfish n***a / The crown is heavy, huh / I pray they my real friends, if not, I’m YNW Melly.” Not only does he question Drake trying to make music representing a lot of different cultures and communities, which many have called appropriation, but Kendrick Lamar also compares himself to Melly, who will eventually face a retrial for accusations of murdering his two friends. So “First Person Shooter” requires an explanation, because even though J. Cole’s made his stance clear, it’s still up in the air whether The Boy intended to legitimately pay tribute or disrespect him instead.
Another set of bars goes over a few different topics, starting with a reference to the alleged 2014 incident at DJ Khaled’s birthday party at the LIV Miami club in which Diddy reportedly struck Drake in the face. This line also ropes in the “Evil Ways” rapper’s longtime personal bodyguard Chubbs: “You gon’ make a n***a bring back Puff, let me see if Chubbs really crash something.” This continues Kendrick Lamar and Drizzy’s references to security guards and physical confrontation, such as Kendrick’s security guard 2TEEZ and Drake making fun of Kendrick trying to get physical “with a size 7 men’s on.”
However, right after this bar, we get another instance of Kendrick Lamar questioning whether the rap game at large really accepts Drake, as well as a few jabs at his alleged liposuction. “Yeah, my first one like my last one, it’s a classic, you don’t have one / Let your core audience stomach that, then tell them where you get your abs from.” J. Cole’s “7 Minute Drill” diss proved that going at Mr. Morale’s catalog is a huge risk, so maybe Drake will instead offer up his acclaimed projects like Nothing Was The Same, Take Care, or If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late. But the picture painted here presents the former Degrassi star as someone who, at many turns and via some non-commercial metrics, has found it difficult to find acceptance or respect, for right or wrong reasons.
Drake definitely found his due flowers from the new generation, something that Kendrick Lamar also questioned in “Euphoria.” There’s a Lil Yachty mention here, but the bombshell relating to this is a commentary on his artistic friendship with Sexyy Red, and how K.Dot seemingly accuses Drizzy of faking this support while putting other women down because he sees them as competition. “When I see you stand by Sexyy Red, I believe you see two bad b***hes / I believe you don’t like women, that’s real competition, you might pop a** with them.” Not only does this continue the lipo allegations and poke at Drake’s femininity and strength (another controversial and frankly, tired move), but it insinuates that he needs the St. Louis MC more than she needs Drake.
Also, the specific line about not liking women is very relevant given Drake’s complicated relationship with women in his personal life, as explored through topics in his music, and with industry peers. On Her Loss‘ “Circo Loco” (2022), he seemed to take shots at Megan Thee Stallion, and on For All The Dogs‘ “Away From Home” (2023), he disses jazz musician Esperanza Spalding. Kendrick Lamar even shouted Megan out on “family ties” in 2021. With all this in mind, Drake will have to respond to folks questioning his authenticity, his ego, and his true intentions when it comes to his relationships with women… and the pgLang creative didn’t even have to “talk about [Drake] liking young girls” as Drizzy predicted on his “Taylor Made Freestyle” A.I. diss from Tupac Shakur’s “perspective” to do that. Yikes.
One of the most incendiary moments on “Euphoria” relates to another scathing Drake diss: Pusha T’s “The Story Of Adidon.” Earlier in Kendrick Lamar’s three-part diss, he calls his rival out for never responding to Pusha T’s cut and for going at Pharrell, but the real call-back appears later on. First, K. Dot accuses the Canadian superstar of trying to look for dirt on him. Interestingly enough, Pusha made similar claims in 2018 when they were at the height of their beef. “Why would I call around tryna get dirt on n***as, y’all think all of my life is rap?” Kendrick raps, which also responds to people pressuring him to respond to Drake quickly, as this track took over two weeks to arrive.
But the plot thickens on the very next bar, which continues to call out Drake for being a troll, constantly goading Kendrick Lamar to respond, and posting and talking about this constantly on social media. “That’s h*e s**t, I got a son to raise, but I can see you know nothing about that.” Kendrick calls back to “The Story Of Adidon” by mentioning that Drake never announced his son to the public until Pusha T exposed that he was a father.
Pusha T’s diss was eventually mulled over, and the Scorpion artist now has a public and very wholesome bond with his son. But the “Silent Hill” spitter flips this once more by making fun of Aubrey Graham’s social media obsession and concerning himself with pettiness rather than family. Once more, Drake will have to back up his online persona through bars, not just more IG stories, likes, comments, or DMs.
Ain’t 20v1, It’s 1v20 If I Gotta Smack N***as That Write With You
One of the simplest but sharpest lines on “Euphoria” directly responds to this “Push Ups” line: “What the f**k is this, a 20v1?” On that line, Drake calls out many rap industry players (Future, Metro Boomin, Rick Ross, etc.) for teaming up on him at the same time, something that Kendrick Lamar turns right back against him. “Ain’t 20v1, it’s 1v20 if I gotta smack n***as that write with you,” he spits, once again bringing up ghostwriting claims that Drizzy has been dogged by ever since 2015.
While Drake’s said a lot about it since his Meek Mill beef, it does carry a different context now. Alleged reference tracks recently leaked, in which he supposedly took them one-for-one from his peers. While these are just rumors (particularly Cash Cobain’s track), it truly questions whether Drake could confidently place himself as the GOAT. The 6ix God might have to respond to Kendrick Lamar’s accusations by claiming more artistic responsibility for his own work than what the credits (or a lack of credits, rather) would have you believe. More importantly, he needs to explain why he can still be the GOAT in hip-hop today, which isn’t an impossible task: just a difficult one.
Kendrick Lamar cooked Drake using a Toronto accent…now im just saying me personally, I wouldn’t take that disrespect pic.twitter.com/uRg45DEvh4
— Phillip loyal to the Shōgun (@xialingsfling) April 30, 2024
Finally, Kendrick Lamar pettily and mercilessly clowns the 6ix’s accent, slang, and street ties. While closing “Euphoria,” he insinuates that Drake can’t fake the street funk, even if he found success in the U.S. rap scene. Kendrick uses the term “crodie” to taunt him, a Crip flip of “brodie” popularized by Toronto rapper Pressa. He’s allegedly affiliated with the Wass Gang, a Crip set in the city that Drake has rapped about often through direct reference and through using “crodie.” After this mocking use of the Toronto accent to warn Drake to refrain from mentioning family business, Kendrick Lamar says he’s never in trouble in Toronto when he goes, contrary to what his nemesis would have you believe.
“I be at New Ho King eating fried rice with a dip sauce and blamy, crodie / Tell me you’re cheesing, fam/ We can do this right now on the camera, crodie.” New Ho King is a popular late-night Chinese food spot in Toronto, and “cheesing” is Toronto and Jamaican patois slang for being angry. The last line proposes that these two hip-hop titans duke it out for real in the public eye, which was the challenge K.Dot offered on “Like That.”
Kendrick Lamar just dropped “Euphoria,” his response track to Drake’s “Push Ups” and “Taylor Made Freestyle” amid their beef. You’ve probably already heard the track, but if you haven’t, we’d recommend you check it out before getting into this angle, which a lot of people are already pointing to online. Moreover, K.Dot had some bars for Drizzy’s artistic relationship with Sexyy Red. “When I see you standing by Sexyy Red. I believe you see two bad b***hes,” he raps on the cut. “I believe you don’t like woman, that’s real competition, you might pop a** with them.” This also ties into another bar that the Compton lyricist has here, seemingly about the Toronto creative’s alleged plastic surgery.
Furthermore, this doesn’t really come off as much of a shot at Sexyy Red, but more so a comment on Drake’s complicated relationship with women in his music. After all, he’s thrown out shots against the likes of Megan Thee Stallion, someone that Kendrick Lamar has shouted out as a force before on 2021’s “family ties,” for example. Also, it could speak to wanting to associate with these femcees not due to actual admiration or genuine support, but because the OVO mogul knows that they are real competitors to him and doesn’t want to be on their bad side. Of course, this is all speculative, but it’s rap beef: the cookie’s crumbling as it should.
Kendrick Lamar Addresses Sexyy Red & Drake On “Euphoria”
Kendrick Lamar seemingly calls Drake fruity on his Diss Track “Euphoria”:
“When I see you standing next to Sexyy Red. I believe you see 2 Bad Btches. I believe you don’t like woman. That’s REAL competition. You might pop azz with them!” pic.twitter.com/Mwltwrj87D
Elsewhere, folks are obviously going wild over this on social media, whether they’re a fan of “Euphoria” or they’re not impressed. What’s definitely true is that Kendrick Lamar included a lot of shots for Drake across six and a half minutes, and there are surely plenty of lines that people will continue to break down and discover new things about as time goes on. Turns out the wait was worth it. Would you agree?
Whatever your take is, let us know in the comments section down below. Given all of Drake’s trolling against Kendrick Lamar as of late, it will be interesting to see whether he stays in this mode or hits the booth right back. Both MCs have warned the other not to proceed, so maybe we’re in for a whole lot of alleged dirt. No matter what happens, Round 2 is here: sit back and enjoy the show.
When Drake’s “Taylor Made Freestyle” dissed Kendrick Lamar from the “perspectives” of Tupac Shakur and Snoop Dogg by replicating their voices with A.I. technology, the latter West Coast legend didn’t really seem to mind that much. He simply uploaded a video on Instagram of him laughing in disbelief, questioning what happened, pointing to his Death Row clothing, and saying that he’s going back to bed. However, Tha Doggfather’s recent Instagram Story repost has fans thinking that he actually picked a side here. Moreover, he reposted a clip of him, ‘Pac, and other Cali icons over the years with the audio of “Taylor Made Freestyle” in the background.
Furthermore, this is a very curious repost given that Drake himself took down “Taylor Made Freestyle” from his social media after a legal threat from Tupac’s estate. Some Kendrick Lamar die-hards are scrambling for answers right now, either criticizing Snoop Dogg for this repost or making excuses: he didn’t hear the audio, he doesn’t run his account, he got hacked… the whole shebang. But to be honest, this isn’t really a surprising co-sign if it is actually a co-sign. After all, he appeared on the Toronto rapper’s For All The Dogs album last year, and maybe he does want K.Dot to uphold unwritten rap beef law and come through with a response already.
Either way, it definitely wasn’t what Kendrick Lamar fans wanted to see, and it would be really curious to hear Snoop Dogg explicitly speak on this issue. Maybe that’s something that we’ll see once (or if) the Compton creative responds, but we know that Drake will likely keep basking in his current, still up-for-grabs victory and taunting him to clap back. His most recent social media troll was wearing chains that either are or at least resemble Tupac’s, plus a sweatshirt of Compton Community College. This is allegedly where Mr. Morale’s wife graduated from.
Meanwhile, the Long Beach MC is busy dealing with his current Death Row tenure. For example, he recently brought back Danny Boy as an artist for the label after years of separation. We’ll see what the future of the collective holds, especially as the West Coast is looking for a “savior” right now. For more news and the latest updates on Drake, Kendrick Lamar, and Snoop Dogg, stay logged into HNHH.
Well, it seems like Drake is far from done with trolling Kendrick Lamar again on social media amid their rap beef, for which the latter still has yet to drop another track responding to the former’s two disses. Moreover, some fans think that his latest Instagram Story is actually targeting rival. This is due to what Drizzy is wearing in the “fit pic”: a sweatshirt of Compton Community College, where K.Dot’s wife reportedly (and allegedly) attended, and chains that (allegedly) are or at least resemble Tupac Shakur’s. No caption, no song attached: just a mirror selfie. That’ll definitely show him…
Furthermore, what was once the most exciting and potentially expansive hip-hop “civil war” the genre’s seen in decades now turned into a coup d’état… on both ends. On one hand, you have the “20 versus 1” against Drake, which he’s been able to effectively dismiss despite Future, Metro Boomin, and company’s attempts to unite to “take him down.” On the other, there’s Kendrick Lamar’s lack of response, and how much of the rap community now doubts if he can “hold the crown” if he can’t clap back in a beef he technically started. But it’s fair to say that, for rap fans with no horse in this race, both outcomes have been disappointing to some degree.
For one, Drake’s consistent trolling of Kendrick Lamar is starting to backfire at least a little bit, as putting all this energy with no response is really putting him in a 50 Cent antic category that he was right on the border of. Add onto that a removed diss track that used Tupac and Snoop Dogg’s A.I. voices and you’ve got plenty of reason as to why hardcore rap nerds, casual fans, and the industry at large is either feeling skeptical about this approach or mostly interested in the spectacle of it all. Of course, the Compton lyricist’s lack of response is patient and somewhat confusing, but above all, it speaks volumes as to his confidence in his superiority and his refusal to play into social media bait. But it’s also harder to swallow when he’s been wanting this for years.
Meanwhile, with rumors that this was all to promote a supposed new album from the pgLang creative, that would certainly be a sad reality to cope with that many fans are fearing right now. If all the smoke is for marketing or to give yourself a boost, weren’t there less combative, incendiary, or genuine ways of building hype? It’s clear that the only thing that can get things back on track is a response, or at least something from Mr. Morale, but it’s definitely been an interestingly bizarre dynamic to witness. On that note, come back to HNHH for more news and the latest updates on Kendrick Lamar and Drake.
Trippie Redd and Machine Gun Kelly, the brains behind the recently released genre : sadboy project, were Complex‘s most recent guests for their GOAT Talk series, in which artists debate the best (and worst) contenders in particular categories. The topic of diss tracks came up, for which MGK suggested a pretty understandably biased answer: his “Rap Devil” diss track towards Eminem from back in 2018. On the other hand, Trippie invoked former collaborator Drake and his Meek Mill diss, 2015’s “Back To Back,” as his answer. As far as other revelations, the “Taking A Walk” creative named Young Thug as the greatest MC of all time, whereas Kelly gave Lil Wayne the title.
Furthermore, both sadboys have been involved in some publicly notable beef in the past, albeit for very different reasons and with very different results. Machine Gun Kelly battled Eminem in 2018, a feud which ended with Slim Shady’s “Killshot” diss track and no response from its target, who chose to publicly downplay it rather than clap back. Whether or not you agree with his assessment, at least he put an end to it instead of ignoring it until the hype died down. In Trippie Redd’s case, he and former collaborator 6ix9ine went at it online, but one of Tekashi’s former associates, Anthony “Harv” Ellison, claimed that it was all fake for staged publicity.
Trippie Redd & Machine Gun Kelly On GOAT Talk: Watch
The “GOAT Diss Song” conversation begins at around the 7:15-minute mark.
Another debatably staged development has been taking over a lot of discourse around genre : sadboy, in fact. Trippie Redd and Machine Gun Kelly recently clowned a producer who they fired from their collab project, who claimed that part of their rollout was to start beef with producers from their tape. Overall, it’s a very confusing and odd marketing decision either way, whether to lean into it or to seemingly validate the claims. Maybe this is just the evolution of rap beef these days: fighting over made-up fights and why the made-up fights are worse than the real fights over the blah, blah, blah… and so on.
Meanwhile, this all unfortunately falls under some mournful context given the passing of Trippie’s frequent collaborator Chris King. It’s a difficult time for his loved ones, and one that these debacles over genre : sadboy must not make any easier for the Ohio native in particular. We wish King’s loved ones and him the best in this trying time, and that they find light in their corners. For more news and the latest updates on Trippie Redd and Drake, log back into HNHH.
While Kendrick Lamar fans either patiently or desperately anticipated his response to Drake’s “Push Ups,” his opponent chose not to wait until he suits up. Drizzy dropped “Taylor Made Freestyle” on Instagram late Friday night (April 19) after sharing “Push Ups” on streaming services that same day. Add onto that the other players in rap’s coup d’état, and you’ve got a whole lot of drama that the 6ix God is happily laughing through.
The principal idea is that Drake wants Kendrick Lamar to respond to him because the Compton lyricist has supposedly been sitting on a diss track for four years. That’s in addition to the fact that Dot ignited this whole situation with his verse on Future and Metro Boomin’s “Like That.” On “Taylor Made Freestyle,” Drake uses three main tactics and angles to portray K. Dot as a scared dog who “barked up the wrong tree and got his head popped off in a crowded room.” Whether you think this is a desperate move or a nail-in-the-coffin moment, the OVO mogul certainly got what he wanted: respect through being disrespectful.
Examining the primary controversy surrounding the song is imperative to understand the levels of disrespect. The first two verses on “Taylor Made Freestyle” use A.I. technology to replicate Tupac and Snoop Dogg’s voices, respectively. Drake raps from their “perspective” about how “they” want Kendrick Lamar to ether Drake on behalf of the West Coast. However, lines like “You supposed to be the boogeyman, go do what you do” question whether Kendrick is really like that, as Snoop and ‘Pac were more combatively upfront in their Death Row days. Aubrey also alludes to Snoop passing Kendrick the torch as the new frontrunner for the West Coast at a 2011 concert in L.A., emphasizing this historical pressure.
Aside from any ethical conversations about the use of A.I. here, the illusion is just a shiny taunt in this context and doesn’t truly emulate either Cali legend. Kendrick, on the other hand, previously used similar technology in ways many felt were more thematically appropriate and less disrespectful to their subject’s memories. These include talking to ‘Pac on TPAB‘s “Mortal Man” or using deepfakes of Will Smith, Nipsey Hussle, and more to draw parallels between their stories and his own in the music video for “The Heart Part 5.” But more importantly than all of this, the “Evil Ways” spitter questions the “Savior” creative’s L.A. ties by mentioning an apartment he bought in New York, and accuses Lamar of faking his aggressive funk and being “out of moves” in this “chess game” that the world is watching.
Kendrick Lamar Is A Swiftie Through & Through, Drizzy Declares
Drake also audits Kendrick Lamar’s artistic roots through Taylor Swift’s new album, which dropped the same day “Push Ups” hit DSPs and this “freestyle” hit @champagnepapi’s IG. Specifically, he claims that Kendrick hasn’t responded yet because he doesn’t want to interfere with Swift’s schedule, despite Drake mentioning her as his only competition on the song “Red Button” last year. “She Taylor-Made your schedule with Ant, you out of the loop / Hate all you corporate industry puppets, I’m not in the mood,” he raps, possibly referencing TDE’s Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith, or Kendrick’s manager Anthony Saleh. It follows similar points from “Push Ups” and posits that Mr. Duckworth is prioritizing money over his craft.
On this point, though, someone tried to turn this argument against Drake: Kanye West. The now-independent Chicago artist raps the following on his “Like That” remix: “Where’s Lucian? Serve your master, n***a / You caught a little bag for your masters, didn’t ya? / Lifetime deal, I feel bad for n***as.” This paints the former Degrassi star as a puppet of UMG head Sir Lucian Grainge who, in 2022, confirmed that Drake entered a multi-faceted deal with Universal Music Group, per Variety. At the time, the publication reported that Drake signed a rumored “Lebron-sized deal” with UMG that could be worth upwards of $400 million.
Nonetheless, Ye’s retort remains muddy, speculative, and lacks actual information that would make these claims worthwhile in this feud. Another muddy point is how Ye and Drake argue over ghostwriting and credits when they’ve both written for each other. Regardless, Kendrick Lamar is now “independent” through pgLang. However, another separate report from Varietyin 2020 indicated that Lamar signed a worldwide administration agreement with Universal Music Publishing.
“Taylor Made Freestyle” Anticipates Kendrick’s Next Shots
Drake throws shots at Kendrick Lamar on ‘Taylor Made Freestyle’
“Dot, I know you in that NY apartment / You struggling right now, I know it…”
“In the notepad doing lyrical gymnastics, my boy / You better have a motherf***in’ quintuple entendre on that sh*t” pic.twitter.com/NQWnAU7AGU
Finally, Drake addresses potential disses that Kendrick Lamar’s response track would include. The Tupac A.I. verse begs K.Dot to call out the “Canadian lightskin” for “liking young girls.” First, this attempts to disarm shots at his perceived racial ambiguity and insecurity. Later, it addresses the speculation surrounding his alleged proximity to Millie Bobby Brown, Bella Harris, and others when they were underage. It’s important to note that the only documented evidence of this type of alleged behavior was from a Denver concert in 2010. Per The Guardian, the then-23-year-old Drake brought a girl onstage, caressed her, kissed her on the lips, and was shocked when the girl told her that she was 17 — the age of consent in Denver — afterward. However, her actual age is still officially unconfirmed at press time.
In addition, Drake jokes that Kendrick Lamar needs a “quintuple entendre” on his response track, mocking how folks hype up his complex pen. This complements his claim that “Push Ups” only took him “an hour or two” to write and that his next diss track is when Kendrick will really lose. Overall, the Certified Lover Boy tries to downplay his rival’s artistic value and patience through consistent pressure. Some jabs could be interpreted as hypocritical, though, such as Drake questioning Kendrick’s street ties. Nevertheless, as of writing this article, there are only rumors of whether or not K.Dot will eventually respond mercilessly or if he’ll pull a J. Cole. But history shows us that a single verse can change everything.
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