To borrow a line from Jay-Z, it’s no fun when the family feud. But it is quite interesting to watch when celebrities kinfolk get involved in public disputes.
According to Drake, Metro Boomin and Future’s diss song “Like That” featuring Kendrick Lamar (apparently a longtime foe) didn’t ruffle his feathers. However, the “Rich Baby Daddy” rapper’s father, Dennis Graham, seems far more bothered by the remarks made on wax. To air out his frustration, the Papa Bear reportedly clapped back at the trio and Drake’s former industry friend, who has unfollowed his son online since the track’s release.
On March 25, in a now-deleted post on Instagram, Graham supposedly delivered the heat Drake’s response lacked. “Yo, I am about to drop some new music,” he sarcastically wrote. “And I am not sure if it’s going to sell, but I am going to call some of my homies and get them to start a beef with Drake and get them to unfollow him, and that’s going make my shit shoot up to number 1. I’m sure this is going to work, so let me get some people on board for this and watch what kind of attention this gets!!!!!!!!!!!! I WILL BE NUMBER ONE 1Day!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
Folks online are divided on Graham’s involvement. Some consider it corny. Others declare that all is fair in love and rap beef. But hey: If Beyoncé’s mother, Tina Knowles, can thumb thug it out with trolls when it comes to her superstar daughter, Graham should be granted the same parental grace.
In December 2023, Metro Boomin expressed dissatisfaction with how the 2024 awards show season dismissed his HEROES & VILLAINS LP as the best hip-hop full-length of that timespan. While this relates to his current Drake beef, it displays an important principle. People need to push for quality and quantity, earned success, and a genuine approach to making resonant art. It’s this philosophy that Metro Boomin and Future’s new collaborative album WE DON’T TRUST YOU champions above all else.
Here, the iconic trap duo reunites for a whole project for the first time… at least officially. They’ve both been instrumental to each other’s rise in rap’s top tier, and few pairings are as revered, complimentary, or rewarding in the genre’s mainstream today. While this first of two albums from them is not a perfect attempt, it does showcase a lot of focus, new approaches, intent-driven artistry, and most importantly, a lot of bangers.
For the most part, Future is carrying the lyrical load and largely lives up to that responsibility. His vocal tone and inflections are as buttery and rich as the sensational cheesecake he loves, and the infectiousness of this delivery hasn’t lost its luster over his legendary decade-plus-long run. Whether it’s menacing croons on “GTA,” aggressive barks on “WTFYM,” or the heartfelt and dynamic melancholy on the bonus cut “Where My Twin @,” the Atlanta MC’s able to highlight his versatility here.
Future offers some great switch-ups in his flow to keep his verses riveting. WE DON’T TRUST YOU find him skating over the title track, “Young Metro,” “Runnin Outta Time,” “Fiend (She A Vibe),” and many more. Sadly, on other songs, the 40-year-old fails to keep up these acrobatics. While passionate and fast verses carry “Ain’t No Love,” despite stagnant flows, these repetitive lyrical performance patterns can’t bring “Slimed In” above a background mood listen.
But every single beat on here ends better than how it started, and that’s meant as high praise. Through a lot of well-balanced and progressive structural arrangements, Metro Boomin continues his penchant for making simple yet subtly evolutionary records. There’s the chilling calmness of “Cinderella,” the bombastic and expertly put-together Eazy-E and Rodney O homages on “Like That,” the incredible beat switch and sample flips on “Everyday Hustle“… the list goes on. With woodwinds, horns, strings, electric guitar solos, organs, vocal samples, and probably a lot more, he makes unassuming pianos, synths, and drum patterns loom large.
However, Metro Boomin’s beats can sometimes have a hollow impact on arrival. Take “Ice Attack,” a song whose familiar piano beat becomes all but forgotten once the second (and much better) instrumental sampling La Chat’s “Yeah, I Rob” switches in. There are only so many melodic layers you can pile up song after song before you start noticing a pattern, albeit a very well-executed one that often reaches Metro’s past highs. There are also some small mixing miscalculations like Future’s muffled vocals kickstarting “Magic Don Juan (Princess Diana)” and the overpowering hi-hats in its second half.
Why Are Future & Metro Boomin Distrusting On Here?
Those are just small details in the face of the thematic focuses of WE DON’T TRUST YOU, but let’s make one thing clear: this isn’t revolutionary Future writing. Success, loyalty, the streets, lack of romantic satisfaction, wealth, weapons, and the weary reflections of a women-and-party-loving lifestyle of a global superstar surround the “Ridin Strikers” spitter. Regardless, his high-quality performances make this well-treaded ground grow gardens of standout bars throughout, despite some dead-on-arrival moments.
WE DON’T TRUST YOU narrates an unquenchable ambition and luxury fueled by paranoia on “Claustrophobic,” odes to hard work and pain on “Seen It All,” and so much more. But these themes seem more deliberate than ever, emphasizing distrust in the rap game at large. They’re losing faith in its authenticity, skill level, work ethic, loyalty, and significantly, the competition. Of course, there are a few other people on this project that cemented this idea.
The Weeknd’s background vocals stun, Travis Scott moves through “Cinderella” like smoke with earworm flows, and he and Playboi Carti are a fantastic tag team on “Type S**t.” Some short vocals from Young Thug appear, and Rick Ross asserts his way through impressive rhyme schemes. Perhaps the most significant guest to name is Prodigy, the late Mobb Deep legend whose “corny rappers” rant from decades ago narrates many songs here through vocal samples (plus sampling Mobb’s “Quiet Storm”).
P’s words, plus Kendrick Lamar’s earth-shattering feature on “Like That,” represent the narrative of beef that currently dominates much of WE DON’T TRUST YOU‘s reception. This album never lets you forget its pressure-stressing theme and provides amazing hip-hop to represent two collaborators who’ve built a strong trust through a decade-plus run of consistency. Hendrix is as consumed by his vices as he is compelled to seek them out to authentically live the lifestyle that lyrically leads to both pain and prosperity.
Like every great trap album that came before WE DON’T TRUST YOU, this makes for a fulfilling push and pull. A few smooth transitions between distinct and unique songs make this album flow quite seamlessly. Southside, Boi-1da, Mike Dean, Wheezy, Alan Ritter, Honorable C.N.O.T.E., Zaytoven, and more help shape this run behind the board. It’s not quite varied or thematically versatile enough to escape occasional fatigue and recycling, but for its contemporary appeal, it certainly succeeds.
To no one’s surprise, the sheer chemistry between Future and Metro Boomin defines WE DON’T TRUST YOU. There is always something up to standard, and maybe even exceeding it, to latch onto with each new cut, whether beat or verse-wise. In addition, this project still retains the darkness, ethereal intoxication, and grittiness associated with their collaborative history. For classic and newer fans, there’s a lot to love.
WE DON’T TRUST YOU is, in many ways, exactly what we expected. It feels like a throwback to 2014-2016 on many occasions in the best way, although some beats evoke past projects like HEROES & VILLAINS almost too much. The album falters in its artists’ occasional lack of consistency or idiosyncrasy, and in being what we predicted and have heard for years. This aside, their loyalty to their sound does not replace their will to make it the best it can be, every single time.
This resulted in rap’s next big beef, one that WE DON’T TRUST YOU might not outshine right now, but will likely outlast due to its many highlights and the overall album experience. But what Metro Boomin and Future want is for the genre’s mainstream to take itself seriously among the best that the culture has to offer. On that metric, there are a few areas in which this project could’ve done better. Yet based on these songs, its upcoming sequel will not fall victim to complacency.
On the heels of the explosive release of their highly anticipated collaborative album WE DON’T TRUST YOU, Future and Metro Boomin share the official music video for “Young Metro” with The Weeknd.
WE DON’T TRUST YOU arrived on Friday as a celebration of the historic partnership of two culture-shifting legends at the peak of their powers, nearly breaking the internet in its wake. It officially became Spotify’s most-streamed album in a single day in 2024 on release day, with 6 songs from the album occupying the entire top 6, including “Like That” at #1. WE DON’T TRUST YOU also dominated Apple Music upon release, where the album landed at #1 and songs from the album occupied the entire top 12. It also occupied the #1 spot on Amazon Music. The duo shared the official music video for “Type Shit” with Travis Scott and Playboi Carti on Friday, where the video has been trending in the top 3 all weekend, as “Like That” trends at #1.
The duo will next release a second collaborative project on April 12, 2024, and listeners around the world are bracing for impact—two LPs’ worth of Metro’s sinister cinematic soundscapes and Future’s irresistible demon musicality. These projects are a culmination of rap’s most fruitful partnership. Since meeting when Metro was only 17 years old, Hendrix and Metro have penetrated the streets and the pop culture consciousness with engrossing hustler theme songs — stylish anthems that resonate everywhere from the block and beyond.
Rappers, broadly speaking, are known for being about as reckless with their money as they are gifted with wordplay. If you’re gettting “millions” for your records, why wouldn’t you spend it on throwaways, just to prove you have it?
Viewed from that perspective, it makes sense that the primary feature of Future and Metro Boomin‘s “Young Metro” video is a Tesla Cybertruck. There’s almost no other purchase that screams “ostentatious wealth” and “no f*cks given about utility” like copping a vehicle that rusts if you leave it out on a misty night.
The Weeknd also makes a cameo appearance with a bandana over his face like an old-timey cattle rustler. Naturally, there are also the requesite shots of beautiful, scantily-clad young women, one of whom braids Metro’s hair. Another playfully “lifts” the truck over her head as the others tastefully drape themselves across its blocky frame — these guys certainly have a sense of humor.
“Young Metro” appears, of course, on Future and Metro’s new album, We Don’t Trust You, which has been receiving plenty of attention over the weekend — both for the novelty of the two artists reuniting for a full project and for some of the more incendiary features. It’s out now via Epic and Republic and you can check it out here.
Drake and Future proved themselves to be an unstoppable duo over the course of their careers. They have an extensive history of collaborating, including a full-length album and countless guest features. The two even co-headlined arena shows across North America on their Summer Sixteen Tour. In the booth and on stage, Drake and Future bring the best out of one another. Their working relationship has been championed by fans, encouraging their prolific output as collaborators. The alliance between Drake’s OVO Sound and Future’s Freebandz supposedly ended recently following subliminal disses and rumors. In 2023, N.O.R.E. suggested that Future was upset with Drake teaming up with 21 Savage for their Her Loss project. These unconfirmed rumors coincided with fans noticing tension between Drake and Metro Boomin, with whom Future recently released We Don’t Trust You.
Despite denying any beef between them, Kendrick Lamar’s vicious verse on “Like That” has sparked further discussion about their relationship. Lamar sent shots at Drizzy and J. Cole’s “First Person Shooter” collab and dismissed the notion of them as “The Big Three.” With the hip hop community in a frenzy, both Drake and Future’s respective camps are shrugging off rumors and shutting down any potential beef. With Drake walking out to a Future song at a recent show, it appears that any sort of feud is already underway. Whether or not they are actually beefing, we have gotten a sizable amount of legendary music from Drake and Future. Today, we are looking at their history of collaborations.
Building Their Collaborative Chemistry
Drake and Future first teamed up in 2011 when Drizzy hopped on the remix of Future’s breakout hit, “Tony Montana.” While it opened the door for more music, it also foreshadowed any bubbling tension between the two as Future was upset with Drake for not showing up to the song’s video shoot. Many of their other collaborations in their early careers were featured on other artists’ songs. Both artists appeared on DJ Drama’s “We In This Bitch 1.5,” Lil Wayne’s “Love Me,” and Preme’s “DnF.” Besides “Tony Montana,” Drake jumped on some of Future’s other early projects, including FBG: The Movie, on the song “Fo Real.” He was also on the “Sh!t Remix” and “Never Satisfied” from 2014’s Honest.
What A Time To Be Alive & Creative Winning Streak
After building their collaborative chemistry for a few years, Drake and Future’s rapport culminated in a creative winning streak. This musical peak started in 2015 when Drake served as the lone guest feature on “Where Ya At” from Future’s DS2, which Metro Boomin primarily produced. The song foreshadowed what was to come from their full-length collaboration, What A Time To Be Alive. The project arrived the same year, boasting major hits like “Jumpman.” With Metro Boomin executive producing, the album displayed the magic of their musical partnership. Their commercial and creative streak continued into 2016, with Future appearing on “Grammys” and co-writing “Feel No Ways” from Views. Following the conclusion of their Summer Sixteen Tour, they released “Used To This,” a standalone single affirming the alliance between OVO and FBG. Additionally, Future provided background vocals on “Blue Tint” from Drake’s Scorpion.
The Supposed End Of An Era
Before any tension arose between them, Drake and Future started the 2020s with a run of major collaborations. Ten days into 2020, they unleashed “Life Is Good,” a two-part song where each had their own moment to shine. Not too long after, they reconnected for the toxic anthem “Desires” and “D4L,” which also featured Young Thug. Both of these tracks appeared on Drake’s Dark Lane Demo Tapes, a compilation of previously released and leaked songs. Going into 2021, Future guested twice on Drake’s Certified Lover Boy, contributing vocals to “N 2 Deep” and the hit single “Way 2 Sexy.” Like “D4L,” the latter also featured Young Thug.
As of now, Drake and Future’s final collaborations were both on 2022’s I Never Liked You. Drake rapped on “I’m On One” and sang on “Wait For U,” which sampled Tems’s “Higher.” The latter won the Grammy Award for Best Melodic Rap Performance. If Drake and Future’s supposed beef continues, they certainly ended their musical run on a commercial high note, winning a Grammy and securing a No. 1 single.
The RX is Uproxx Music’s stamp of approval for the best albums, songs, and music stories throughout the year. Inclusion in this category is the highest distinction we can bestow, and signals the most important music being released throughout the year. The RX is the music you need, right now.
“Rap is fun again” was a common sentiment that appeared on social media in the wake of the release of Future and Metro Boomin’s new album, We Don’t Trust You. Unfortunately, fans asserting as much were referring less to the album itself than to one of its features. On the song “Like That,” Kendrick Lamar makes an unlikely appearance with a fiery verse seemingly calling out the two rappers he’s most commonly compared to, Drake and J. Cole.
That’s kind of a shame. Not only has rap been fun for a really long time outside this album and any attendant potential “beef,” but the album itself deserves more than being overshadowed by the shade K. Dot directed at his ostensible rivals. The reason We Don’t Trust You was so heavily anticipated in the first place was the track record of quality chemistry between its principals. Future and Metro have collaborated frequently in the past, and the results have often been stellar, delivering some of the biggest standouts in the rapper’s catalog (the producer’s is another story).
Take “Mask Off.” Aside from being Future’s highest-charting single from 2017-2020 (peaking at No. 5 on the Hot 100), it’s become nearly ubiquitous in popular culture; its titular catchphrase was used as recently as a couple of weeks ago as the title of a profile of Tierra Whack for Vulture. Incidentally, it’s also still Future’s highest-charting solo single; it was supplanted in 2020 by “Life Is Good,” which peaked at No. 2, “Way 2 Sexy” in 2021, and “Wait For U” in 2022. The latter two both hit No. 1; all three songs feature Drake, which is… interesting, in light of recent developments.
Meanwhile, “Superhero (Heroes & Villains)” from Metro’s last official solo album, 2022’s Heroes & Villains, was the second highest-charting song from the album despite not being released as an official single like “Creepin’,” the only better-performing song from the album. Both were the only two songs from Heroes & Villains to appear in the top ten (“Superhero” at No. 8, “Creepin’” at No. 3). It seems safe enough to say that among Metro’s most prolific partnerships, Future is the one that gets people going the most — aside from Drake, who now appears to be on the outs with both.
I’ve now gone four paragraphs and mentioned Drake three times, which feels instructive of the point I’ve been trying to make. Future and Metro should be the focus, and they’ve let themselves get backburnered on what was expected to be one of the standouts of either artist’s career. Even worse, We Don’t Trust You absolutely clears that benchmark, offering some of the most innovative beat work the St. Louis producer has turned in lately — which should be doubly impressive, considering his recent output includes not only Heroes & Villains but also the excellent and versatile Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse soundtrack and much of Young Thug’s Business Is Business jail album, along with a much-improved deluxe re-sequencing thereof.
Likewise, Future, whose last few solo projects prompted somewhat lukewarm responses (including from this publication), sounds more focused than he has since 2017’s Future/Hndrxx double release. Tracks like the titular intro, “Magic Don Juan (Princess Diana),” and “Everyday Hustle” crackle with the duo’s unique chemistry as Future reels in the more maudlin reflections prominent in his prior work to boast and threaten like a kingpin. “Got that sniff on me, that white shit like I’m Tom Brady,” he gloats on “Magic Don Juan.” “I’ma put a sports car on two wheels like it got hydraulics.”
Even on “Like That,” the beat pulls one hell of a sample — Rodney-O & Joe Cooley’s ’88 Uncle Jamm staple “Everlasting Bass,” in the style of Three 6 Mafia’s “Gotta Touch ‘Em (Pt. 2)” — to bolster Kendrick and Future’s nose-thumbing. “Runnin Outta Time” is cinematic, “Fried (She A Vibe)” lives up to its parenthetical, and “Everyday Hustle” is a masterclass in soulful street rap. (Sidebar: Anyone who says Rick Ross sounds “revitalized” here has missed Rick Ross’ last three projects.)
While the album drags on the backend (trap albums remain too long), and, like much of the overall trap oeuvre, can sound a bit repetitive, it more than lives up to its hype. It just sucks that modern audiences are so inundated with new music that the only thing they’ll get excited for is drama, beef, and gossip. Rap has been exciting — We Don’t Trust You is a fine contribution to that tradition — but if all anyone cares about is who dissed who and only gets fired up for guest rappers hijacking the conversation, then no wonder they’re so bored with the music of late. Maybe when We Still Don’t Trust You drops, the actual music can share the spotlight.
We Don’t Trust You is out now via Freebandz/Boominati/Epic/Republic. Get it here.
Did Drake Respond To Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Like That’ Diss?
Drake had two opportunities on stage to address Lamar’s diss. His and Cole’s It’s All A Blur Tour — Big As The What? staged back-to-back concerts on Saturday, March 23, and Sunday, March 24, at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida. Lil Wayne served as the co-headliner for those dates, and the first show only focused on positivity as Drake showered Wayne with praise.
On Sunday, however, Drake had to get something off his chest. Whether it was a direct response to Kendrick (or Future?) is up for interpretation, but this is what Drake said, as circulated on X (formerly Twitter) by Complex:
“A lot of people ask me how I’m feelin’. I’ma let you know how I’m feelin’. Listen, the way I’m feelin’ is the same way I want you to walk out of here feelin’ tonight about your fuckin’ self. ‘Cause you know how I’m feelin’? I’ve got my f*cking head up high. My back straight. I’m ten f*cking toes down in Florida — or anywhere else I go — and I know that, no matter what, there’s not a n***a on this Earth that could ever f*ck with me. And that’s how I want you to talk out of here tonight.”
“I got my f**king head up high, my back straight, I’m ten f**king toes down… and I know no matter what there’s not another n**** on this Earth that could ever f*ck with me… – Drake pic.twitter.com/6VZJtxxKUJ
Future recently took some time off from being a superstar and enjoyed his life as something much greater: a father. Corny intros aside, he recently posted a picture of his children on his Instagram Story in which they were all posing for the camera and showing off their fits. While it’s not the whole family, it’s wholesome to see Fewtch spend some quality time amid what must be a very busy, hectic, and distracting time for him. Sure, he doesn’t exactly have the most amicable or simple romantic history and life, but that energy never translates negatively into his love for his kids.
Of course, Future is probably quite preoccupied right now and deserving of breaks like these thanks to the recent release of his collaborative album with longtime producer Metro Boomin, WE DON’T TRUST YOU. The project has been very successful so far, getting a lot of fan love, plenty of commercial success, and a lot of media discussion. Furthermore, tracks like “Type S**t,” “Everyday Hustle,” “Young Metro,” and more have really taken off and stand among fan favorites of 2024 so far. But it’s all kind of overshadowed right now thanks to the track with Kendrick Lamar, “Like That,” and the beef that it seems to represent.
On this song, the Compton lyricist disses Drake and J. Cole, and it seems like Future and Drizzy are no longer the collaborative duo they once were. On top of all the other sides and players in this feud, fans were shocked when some bars and reevaluations of previous releases pointed to a rift in their relationship. After all, they have supported each other for over a decade at this point, and crafted one of the most high-profile team-ups in rap with the What A Time To Be Alive mixtape in 2015. Regardless, this is all pretty speculative, as nobody’s really launched a whole lot of explicit jabs except Kendrick Lamar.
In fact, Metro Boomin himself seemed to shut down rumors about Pluto and The Boy being at odds. He responded to a fan on Twitter to simply “enjoy the music” and not follow the gossip for clicks. However, it’s still technically possible that he’s just denying that their beef is over a woman, not the existence of the beef itself. As such, we’ll have to wait and see for more signs, and hopefully celebrate more family time and much more beneficial and important things to champion. For more news and the latest updates on Future, log back into HNHH.
Future and Metro Boomin’s We Don’t Trust You came and shook up the game. The album is set for a No. 1 debut and will move between 190K and 220K album-equivalent units in the first week.
In addition, We Don’t Trust You was Spotify’s most-streamed album in a single day of 2024.
On Friday, March 22, Future and Metro Boomin’s WE DON’T TRUST YOU became Spotify’s most-streamed album in a single day in 2024 so far. pic.twitter.com/sJYzJeUM60
Following the explosive release of their collaborative album, WE DON’T TRUST YOU, Future and Metro Boomin have unveiled the official music video for “Type Shit,” featuring Travis Scott and Playboi Carti.
A highly anticipated project, WE DON’T TRUST YOU, quickly made waves upon its release. It showcases the dynamic lyricism and innovative production that define Future and Metro Boomin’s partnership. The album also features the late Prodigy of Mobb Deep, whose voice is heard throughout the skits.
The “Type Shit” music video offers a visual accompaniment to the track’s energetic vibe, featuring captivating visuals and performances from Travis Scott and Playboi Carti. With its star-studded lineup and compelling production, the video adds another layer of excitement to the already acclaimed album.
