Earlier this week, Kendrick Lamar shocked the rap world with the release of “euphoria.” The song took aim at Drake, who had dropped a pair of songs taking shots at Kendrick called “Push Ups” and “Taylor Made Freestyle” last month. The beef goes all the way back to Kendrick’s guest verse on the Future & Metro Boomin song “Like That” earlier this year. The newest developments have rap fans and even plenty of rap artists themselves reacting. The most recent was Jay Electronica, who didn’t actually say anything. But he made a post that seems to make it obvious which side he’s on.
He took to Twitter overnight to share a link to Drake’s song “Champagne Poetry.” It’s the opening track to Drake’s 2021 album Certified Lover Boy. The song currently sits with over 300 million streams on Spotify, 6th most of any song on Certified Lover Boy. While the album itself was met with some harsh criticism upon release, many fans cited “Champagne Poetry” as a standout moment. Jay Elec seems to agree as it’s the song he chose to post to seemingly endorse Drake in the beef without actually saying it out loud. His tweet has generated less than 2k likes at the time of publishing. Check out his post allegedly taking sides in the Drake and Kendrick Lamar beef below.
— J A Y E L E C T R O N I C A (@JayElectronica) May 1, 2024
Some of the people fans were most interested in reacting to Kendrick’s new song “euphoria” are those mentioned by name. Gunna already shared his reaction to the song but others who are name-dropped in the track like Sexyy Red haven’t been clear on how they feel about it.
What do you think of Jay Electronica tweeting out a Drake song just a day after Kendrick Lamar dropped his new diss track? Do you think he’s attempting to subtly imply that he’s siding with Drake in the beef? Let us know in the comment section below.
Rick Ross wasn’t phased by Gillie Da Kid’s criticism of Kendrick Lamar’s new Drake diss, “Euphoria.” After the Million Dollaz Worth Of Game host labeled the track corny during a video on Instagram, Ross popped up in the comments section to accuse him of being “hurt.”
“I f*ck with Kendrick but that sh*t was corn on the cob man,” Gillie said in the video. “You know what’s crazy man? The light-skinned n****s is winning three to nothing. Drake up two to nothing. Chris Brown up one to nothing.” When 2Cool2Blog shared the clip on Instagram, Ross responded: “Ho’s hurt haaaa.”
MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA – MARCH 09: Rapper Rick Ross performs during the “Miami Jazz In The Gardens” music festival at Hard Rock Stadium on March 09, 2024 in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Mireya Acierto/Getty Images)
Ross was one of the first artists to react to Lamar’s “Euphoria” on social media after it dropped. In doing so, he warned Drake against responding. “Stop. Don’t respond, don’t respond,” he advised the Toronto rapper. “You ain’t even peep when the intro came on with the Teddy Pendergrass [sample] — that was that Black vibe. Don’t do it. Don’t go write an eight-minute verse that — I know n***a Yachty, you want to get that money. You ain’t wrong, n***a, keep buying them big houses, but I’ma tell you this like a real n***a: ain’t no more BBLs, ain’t no more ass fillers, ain’t no more cheek fillers.” Check out Ross’ response to Gillie below.
While Drake hasn’t fired back with another song of his own, he reacted to “Euphoria” on his Instagram Story by sharing a clip from 10 Things I Hate About You. Be on the lookout for further updates on Rick Ross as well as Drake and Kendrick Lamar’s feud on HotNewHipHop.
In a video shared on social media, Ross addresses Drake directly, saying, “He may not even heard this yet but look, white boy: I know we not friends, but let me give you this advice because you ain’t got nobody around you, you ain’t got no real n****s around you. Let me put it like that: ain’t no real n****s. Stop. Don’t respond. Don’t respond. You ain’t even peep when the intro came on with that Teddy Pendergrass, that was that Black vibe. Don’t do it. Don’t go write an 8-minute verse.”
Rick Ross tells Drake not to respond to Kendrick Lamar’s diss ‘euphoria’
Ross also addressed Lil Yachty and forgave him for his Drake association, saying, “I know you wanna get that money. You ain’t wrong, n****. Keep buying them big houses.”
Ross, by the way, recently came through with his own Drake diss via “Champagne Moments.” On the track, he goes after Drake with lyrics like, “You ain’t never want to be a n**** anyway, n**** / That’s why you had an operation to make your nose smaller than your father nose, n****.”
Rick Ross has heard “euphoria” and has a message for Drake, whom he affectionately calls “BBL Drizzy” or “White Boy,” stand down.
After questioning does his cargo plane have Wifi, Ross went into a message.
“I know we not friends but let me give you this advice ’cause you ain’t got nobody ’round you or you ain’t got no real n-ggas ’round you, let me just put it like that,” Rozay said. “Stop. Don’t respond, don’t respond. You ain’t even peep when the intro came on with the Teddy Pendergrass – that was that Black vibe. Don’t do it.”
The track opens with Lamar rapping over the Teddy Pendergrass classic “You’re My Latest, My Greatest Inspriation,” calling out “the famous actor we once knew” as spiraling. He also stated Drake was a “pathetic master manipulator” created a fake story about Lamar’s family in “Push Ups.” Another early job is “you make music that pacify them, I can double down on that line but spare you this time, that’s random act of kindness,” hinting at rumors of Drake’s involvement with underage girls.
The track then hits a new level, calling out Drake for dodging Pusha T, calling into question his contracts, bieng a poor father and more. All the while, leaving the belief he has more on the way. One of which, “
Kendrick Lamar has disturbed everybody’s Tuesday working morning (Apr. 30) to fire “Euphoria.”
The track opens with Lamar rapping over the Teddy Pendergrass classic “You’re My Latest, My Greatest Inspriation,” calling out “the famous actor we once knew” as spiraling. He also stated Drake was a “pathetic master manipulator” who created a fake story about Lamar’s family in “Push Ups.” Another early job is “you make music that pacify them, I can double down on that line but spare you this time, that’s random act of kindness,” hinting at rumors of Drake’s involvement with underage girls.
The track then hits a new level, calling out Drake for dodging Pusha T, calling into question his contracts, being a poor father, and more. All the while leaving the belief he has more on the way. One of which, “
YNW Melly is an artist who has been going through an unfortunate situation. Overall, fans know that Melly has been incarcerated for almost six whole years. During this time, he has been investigated and put on trial for allegedly killing two of his friends. Although the first go-round was a mistrial, Melly is supposed to be retried. This has subsequently led to all sorts of delays, and no one really knows whether or not there is going to be closure, anytime soon.
Interestingly enough, Melly was name-dropped on Kendrick Lamar’s new Drake diss, “Euphoria.” “Yeah, Cole and Aubrey know I’m selfish, the crown is heavy/ I pray they my real friends but if not, I’m YNW Melly,” Kendrick raps on the song. It’s a great bar and it is probably one of the more memorable lines from the track. Having said that, it appears as though Melly was made aware of this name-drop. In fact, he made a statement to TMZ, which makes sense given the fact that Lamar’s line is implying a few things.
“Kendrick Lamar is one of my favorite rappers so I feel honored and appalled … I’m a household name — just for the wrong shit!!!” Melly explained. It is certainly a valid way to feel given how things have shaken out here. That said, Kendrick’s bar has renewed discussions around Melly’s case and how some feel as though he has been mistreated. Moving forward, only time will tell whether or not Melly’s trial get sped up.
Let us know what you think of this response from YNW Melly, in the comments section down below. Do you believe that this warranted a response at all? Has Kendrick defeated Drake in this battle, or can the Canadian megastar come back? 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.
It seems like Drake has responded to Kendrick Lamar‘s scathing diss track, “Euphoria.” Lamar has has had the internet abuzz after dropping the diss track today (April 30), and fans have been wondering when and if Drake will respond.
Earlier this evening, Drake took to his Instagram story, sharing a clip from the 1999 movie, 10 Things I Hate About You. In the clip, Julia Stiles’ character reads a poem directed at Heath Ledger’s character.
“I hate the way you talk to me, and the way you cut your hair/ I hate the way you drive my car. I hate it when you stare. I hate your big dumb combat boots, and the way you read my mind. I hate you so much it makes me sick; it even makes me rhyme! I hate it, I hate the way you’re always right. I hate it when you lie. I hate it when you make me laugh, even worse when you make me cry. I hate it when you’re not around, and the fact that you didn’t call.”
The clip in the Instagram story ends right before Stiles’ character says “But mostly I hate the way I don’t hate you. Not even close, not even a little bit, not even at all.”
Drake seems to have shared this clip mockingly in response to several gripes listed in Lamar’s song.
On “Euphoria,” Lamar raps “It’s always been about love and hate, now let me say I’m the biggest hater / I hate the way that you walk / the way that you talk / I hate the way that you dress / I hate the way that you sneak diss / if I catch flight, it’s gon’ be direct.”
But it looks like Drake is having a laugh about the whole ordeal.
Now, the question is, will Drake respond in the form of a new song.
Seventeen days after Drake dropped “Push Ups,” his response to Kendrick Lamar’s “Like That,” Kendrick returned fire with disses of his own on his new record “Euphoria.” Kendrick’s response to Drake comes four days sooner than Drake’s own did, and the Compton rapper wasted no bars in the six-minute record. While Drake’s record took aim at Kendrick Lamar as well as took aim at names like Rick Ross, Future, Metro Boomin, Ja Morant, The Weeknd, Kendrick’s diss focuses solely on Drake. All in all, “Euphoria” is an excellently constructed response filled with double entendres that fire back at Drake in more ways than one.
Let’s break down all the disses and peel back the many layers that exist on the song:
“Euphoria” — the song title
The surface-level explanation for the song here is the feeling that Kendrick Lamar has as he puts out his response to Drake. As the artwork for the song reveals, “euphoria” is a “feeling of well-being or elation,” but it goes much deeper than that. Drake is an executive producer on Euphoria, a show centered on the experiences of high school students. Drake has been questioned by fans about his interactions with underage and young women all throughout his career. The most notable one came after Millie Bobby Brown, who was 13 at the time, gushed about her friendship with the rapper in an interview. “We just texted the other day and he was like ‘I miss you so much,’ and I was like ‘I miss you more!’” she said. Kendrick plays into these rumors and allegations with the song title.
“Everything they say about me is true…”
This line is said in reverse at the beginning of “Euphoria.” The audio is from the 1978 film The Wiz in a line said by Richard Pryor. The full line from the movie is “Everything they say about me is true, I’m a phony…” It’s the beginning of several lines in the song that question Drake’s character and authenticity.
“You not a rap artist, you a scam artist with the hopes of bеing accepted / Tommy Hilfiger stood out, but FUBU nеver had been your collection”
Kendrick continues to question Drake’s authenticity and even goes as far as to question Drake’s Blackness. Tommy Hilfilger was a prominent fashion brand in the hip-hop community during the 1990s, but by the following decade, Hilfiger was accused of being racist as he allegedly disapproved of hip-hop’s embrace of his brand. As a result, hip-hop artists dropped their support for Hilfiger in favor of supporting brands like FUBU. Kendrick casts doubt on Drake’s Blackness by alleging that Drake owned Tommy Hilfiger clothes as he believed it was needed to seem apart of the Black hip-hop community. However, as Kendrick alludes, if Drake was truly apart of the community, he also would’ve had FUBU in his closet, among other Black brands.
“How I make music that electrify ’em, you make music that pacify ’em / I can double down on that line, but spare you this time, that’s random acts of kindness”
Another reference to Drake’s interactions with underage and young women. Kendrick says his music gives people live, while Drake’s own calms people down and puts them to sleep, something a pacifier can help a child do. On the surface, this line is Kendrick’s way saying that Drake’s music is for kids, though he ackownledges a double entendre exists in the line. Despite that, Kendrick won’t go further on the topic, a moment of kindness that won’t be seen again for the rest of the diss track.
“The very first time I shot me a drac’, the homie had told me that “Aim it this way” / I didn’t point down enough, today I show you I learn from those mistakes”
Kendrick recalls the first time he shot a Draco pistol and admits that while he did not do it corrently back then, he eventually learned from those mistakes. Calling the Draco a “Drac,’” creates another double entendre, as it sounds like Kendrick is saying “Drake.” Kendrick is saying that his past jabs at Drake, weren’t good enough, but with “Euphoria,” he proved that he’s figured it all out.
Somebody had told that me you got a ring, on God, I’m ready to double the wage / I rather do that, than let a Canadian n**** make Pac turn in his grave”
Last summer, a report revealed that Drake purchased Tupac Shakur’s famed ring for the price of $1 million, three times more than the pre-sale estimate of between $200,000-$300,000. With this line, Kendrick says he ready to pay double for the ring as Drake possessing it is enough to make Tupac turn in his grave.
“Yeah, Cole and Aubrey know I’m a selfish n**** / The crown is heavy, huh / I pray they my real friends, if not, I’m YNW Melly”
Kendrick doesn’t want to share rap’s crown, and being that Drake and J. Cole have been atop the rap game beside him for years, Kendrick says his hip-hop counterparts are aware of his selfishness. In the end, Kendrick hopes Drake and Cole are his real friends, because if they aren’t, he’ll have to do away with them both as YNW Melly allegedly did to his two friends.
“I don’t like you poppin’ sh*t at Pharrell, for him, I inherit the beef / Yeah, f*ck all that pushin’ P, let me see you push a T / You better off spinnin’ again on him, you think about pushin’ me? / He’s Terrence Thornton, I’m Terence Crawford, yeah, I’m whoopin’ feet”
Kendrick wasn’t a fan of Drake dissing Pharrell on “Meltdown,” so he’s stepping in to respond for Pharrell. Kendrick doesn’t want Drake to diss Pharrell, he’d rather see him deliver his long-awaited response to Pusha T. Furthermore, Kendrick thinks it would be better for Drake to diss Pusha instead of him. Pusha T is Terrence Thornton (his birth name), but Kendrick is like undefeated boxing champion Terence Crawford, whose record is 40-0 (could be a sly reference to Drake’s longtime producer OVO 40). Kendrick will be “whoppin’ feet,” LA slang for beating up someone out of their shoes, in his battle with Drake.
“I know some sh*t about n**** that make Gunna Wunna look like a saint”
Kendrick essentially says if you think Gunna is a snitch in the YSL RICO case, wait till I tell you what I know about Drake and others.
I hate the way that you walk, the way that you talk / I hate the way that you dress / I hate the way you sneak diss, if I catch flight, it’s gon’ be direct / We hate the b*tches you fuck, ’cause they confuse themselves with real women / And notice, I said “We”, it’s not just me, I’m what the culture feelin’”
Kendrick hates everything about Drake: the way he walks, talks, dresses, and sneak disses other artists. Kendrick also hates the woman Drake’s has sexual interactions with because they are not “real women.” This could be another jab at Drake’s alleged affinity for underage/young women as a “real woman” could be defined as a woman over 21 years of age. Kendrick then says that it’s not only him who believes it, but the rest of hip-hop or music culture.
You gon’ make a n**** bring back Puff, let me see if Chubbs really crash somethin’
Kendrick recalls the 2014 club incident where Diddy allegedly punched Drake during a fight in LIV Miami. Kendrick considers bringing Diddy into the battle to really strike fear into Drake. This would mean that Chubbs, Drake’s bodyguard, would have to step in and defend Drake. The Chubbs mention is also a response to him calling Kendrick a “little boy.” In a post to his Instagram Story in response to a rumored Drake diss from Kendrick at that time, Chubbs wrote, “Tell That Little Boy Drop!!! But He Won’t.” Well. He did.
Yeah, my first one like my last one, it’s a classic, you don’t have one / Let your core audience stomach that / Didn’t tell ’em where you get your abs from”
Kendrick brags about having classic albums, something he says Drake does not have. He goes on to say that Drake’s fans need to stomach, or accept, the fact Drake doesn’t have a classic album. As if that wasn’t enough, Kendrick then mocks Drake for allegedly getting liposuction surgery in order to have a six-pack core, a fact he seemingly tries to keep hidden.
“Headshot for the year, you better walk around like Daft Punk”
An amazing double entendre!! Kendrick says his bars on “Euphoria” are the equivalent of Drake receiving a gunshot to the head. The head injuries will force Drake to hide his wounds and “walk around like Daft Punk,” the French electronic music duo known for wearing robot-lie helmets. Kendrick is also saying the “headshot” diss make Drake a “daft punk” dur to his brain injuries. Daft by definition is “silly; foolish” while punk means “a worthless person.” Thanks to “Euphoria,” Drake is now a silly, foolish, and worthless person according to Kendrick.
Surprised you wanted that feature request / You know that we got some sh*t to address
Kendrick suggests that Drake reached out to him for a guest verse (allegedly for “First Person Shooter“) despite their ongoing beef, a request that shocked Kendrick.
I’m knowin’ they call you The Boy, but where is a man? ‘Cause I ain’t see him yet
Kendrick is back to questioning Drake’s character, using the Toronto rapper’s nickname as “The Boy” to point to Drake’s inability to be a man.
“When I see you stand by Sexyy Red, I believe you see two bad bitches / I believe you don’t like women, that’s real competition, you might pop ass with ’em”
In recent months, Drake has been spotted with Sexyy Red on multiple occasions. Kendrick believes Drake wants to be like Sexyy Red and other female rappers. A line later, Kendrick goes on to say that Drake doesn’t like women and sees them as competition, enough to shake ass as some do in their videos, performances, and social media posts.
“Let’s speak on percentage, show me your splits / I make sure I double back with you / You was signed to a n**** that’s signed to a n**** that said he was signed to that n**** / Try cease and desist on the ‘Like That’ record / Hoe, what? You ain’t like that record?”
Kendrick responds to Drake’s claim that Kendrick was being extorted in his previous record deal with TDE and reminds Drake that once signed to Young Money under Cash Money Records which is under Universal Music Group. The “that n****” may be Birdman who was sued by Lil Wayne and accused of withholding profits and refusing to release his Tha Carter V album. Next, Kendrick accusses Drake of sending a cease and desist letter for Future & Metro Boomin’s “Like That,” which Kendrick appears on and used to diss Drake in his verse. This isn’t the first time Drake was accused of sending a cease and desist letter to another rapper.
“‘Back To Back’, I like that record / I’ma get back to that for the record / Why would I call around tryna get dirt on n****s? / Y’all think all of my life is rap?
That’s hoe sh*t, I got a son to raise, but I can see you know nothin’ ’bout that / Wakin’ them up, know nothin’ ’bout that / And tell ’em to pray, know nothin’ ’bout that / And givin’ ’em tools to walk through life like day by day, know nothin’ ’bout that / Teachin’ the morals, and take all the discipline, listen man, you don’t know nothin’ ’bout that / Speakin’ the truth and consider what God’s considerin’, you don’t know nothin’ ’bout that”
Kendrick shows love to Drake’s “Back To Back” record, which the Toronto rapper released in 2016 in response to Meek Mill’s ghostwriter claims against him, but explaining why he would never go on a search for dirt on Drake. Kendrick says fatherhood — something he believes Drake is failing at in multiple ways — occpuies too much of his time, making it impossible for him to find the dirt that would be useful for a diss. “Euphoria” proves that Kendrick didn’t need that dirt.
“Ain’t twenty-v-one, it’s one-v-twenty if I gotta smack n****s that write with you”
Since Meek Mill’s ghostwriting accusations against Drake in 2016, the Torono rapper has been unable to shake off claims that he does not write all of his music. So in response to Drake’s “What the f*ck is this, a twenty-v-one, n****?” line on “Push-Ups,” Kendrick corrects Drake and says it will actually be him against Drake and his ghostwriters if things get more violent.
“Am I battlin’ ghost or AI? N**** feelin’ like Joel Osteen / Funny, he was in a film called ‘AI’ /And my sixth sense tellin’ me to off him”
Kendrick responds to Drake’s “Taylor Made Freestyle” which featured AI verses by Snoop Dogg and Tupac from Drake, by asking if he’s battling AI or a ghost, instead of a real-life rapper. He then likens himself to Joel Osteen, though he actually meant Haley Joel Osment, the child actor who starred in the films The Sixth Sense and AI: Artificial Intelligence. Our own Aaron Williams dove into the connection to Haley Joel Osment in his ranking of the disses on “Euphoria.”
“Yeah, OVO n****s is d*ck riders / Tell ’em run to America to imitate heritage, they can’t imitate this violence”
Kendrick disses Drake’s OVO crew and suggest that they all left Canadian and came to the US to appropriate the culture in the states. Probablem is, as Kendrick says, they’re unable imitate everything including Kendrick’s level of aggression and violence on “Euphoria.”
“Don’t speak on the family, crodie / It can get deep in the family, crodie / Talk about me and my family, crodie? / Someone go bleed in your family, crodie”
Kendrick warns Drake about dissing his loved ones as things will get violent if the Toronto native decides to ignore his warning. Kendrick also mocks Drake by using a Toronto accent and the word “crodie,” a crip variation of “brodie” that Toronto rapper and member of the crip Wassa gang, in these bars.
“Whoever that’s f*ckin’ with him, f*ck you n****s, and f*ck the industry too”
Drake’s friends and the overall industry won’t stop Kendrick from going to war, and he’s ready to battle anyone who wants to stand beside Drake.
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.”
Rick Ross shared some advice for Drake on social media, on Tuesday, telling the Toronto rapper that he shouldn’t bother responding to Kendrick Lamar. The Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers rapper dissed Drake on his new song, “Euphoria,” accusing him of being a bad father, using ghostwriters, and much more. Ross previously dissed Drake in his own track, “Champagne Moments,” earlier this month.
Ross began the clip by referring to Drake as a “white boy.” From there, he asked: “Do they even have WiFi on that cargo plane?” and added, “He may not have heard this yet but look white boy, I know we not friends but lemme give you this advice because you ain’t got nobody around you– you ain’t got no real n****s around you. Let me put it like that.” As for the advice, Ross remarked: “Don’t respond. You ain’t even peep when the intro came on with that Teddy Pendergrass. That was that Black vibe. Don’t do it. Don’t go write an 8 minute verse.” Ross also forgave Yachty for associating with Drake. “I know you wanna get that money. You ain’t wrong. Keep buying them big houses.”
MIAMI BEACH, FL – DECEMBER 31: (L-R) Rick Ross, French Montana and Drake attend Sean Diddy Combs Ciroc The New Years Eve Party at his home on December 31, 2013 in Miami Beach, Florida. (Photo by Johnny Nunez/WireImage)
On “Euphoria,” Lamar echoed similar accusations Ross made on “Champagne Moments,” such as accusing Drake of getting plastic surgery and bringing up his race. “How many more fairytale stories about your life ’til we’ve had enough?” Lamar raps. “How many more Black features ’til you finally feel that you’re Black enough?” He also accuses him of being a bad father.
Rick Ross Warns Drake To Stay Silent
Rick Ross tells Drake not to respond to Kendrick Lamar’s diss ‘euphoria’
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