No Face

DJ Akademiks nor any of his like-minded colleagues have made a compelling case about why “Family Matters” is the best diss track to emerge from Drake’s feud with Kendrick Lamar besides, “it was a 20 v. 1” or “he rapped over three beats.” It might suffice for pedestrian rap fans, but those two arguments alone embody Drake’s appeal to his core audience: quantity over quality. Drake’s turnover rate has been so high over the past four years that a third installment in the Scary Hours series arrived less than a month after his highly-anticipated eighth studio album to equally shaky reception. Though most anticipated that he’d go on an extended break after For All The Dogs, the emergence of King Kendrick in the midst of the second leg of the It’s All A Blur tour stifled his plans.

We’re basically four months removed from the beef of the decade. The summer’s over, and we’re entering the final quarter of 2024 that will preview what’s to come next year. And yet for the last few months, the top charting spots on the Hot 100 that have been historically reserved for Drake’s summer reign have been occupied by a diss song that paints him as a colonizer, a pedophile, a thief, a human trafficker, and an abuser, among many other heinous labels. “Not Like Us” will likely carry through the fall, especially among the marching bands that anchor the spirit of HBCUs nationwide.

Through strategy and consistency, Kendrick Lamar managed to dim Drake’s star power in a matter of days. By the time Drake returned with “The Heart Pt. 6,” Kendrick was clearly the victor, yet no one could’ve predicted the damage inflicted by a record like “Not Like Us.” The volley of insults and accusations came to a standstill and no one, except for Drake loyalists, felt that Kendrick needed to carry on any further with this beef, even as he was accused of domestic violence. After years of proving that he earned his space within a battle realm among hip-hop’s elite, Kendrick revealed Drake’s Achilles heel: being on the defense. The defeat has been rather brutal to witness. The brightest alumni under Lil Wayne’s Young Money had been stomped out like a cigarette butt.

In the months that followed, his approach to asserting his dominance came in the form of jokey-joke records (“U My Everything,” “Wha Gwan Delilah”), a pair of records on Camilla Cabello’s album, and another two songs on Gordo’s album. None of them felt like the “summer vibes” we were truly promised, nor did they make any meaningful impact on the same charts that Drake dominated for 10+ years. “Not Like Us” wasn’t a career-ender but a song that was big enough to eclipse a 15-year hot streak for a summer. Drake’s Billboard accomplishments, historical streaming feats, and cultural value have recently become obsolete in the grand conversation. Some agreed with Kendrick’s analysis of Drake’s place in hip-hop, while others completely fell into the rabbit hole of the “meet the grahams” cover art. Those who already had a disdain towards Drake felt vindicated that someone with a platform as big as Kendrick Lamar’s finally said the quiet parts out loud. But “Not Like Us” isn’t the kill shot people expect it to be. Losing a rap battle of this magnitude isn’t easy to stomach. The perception surrounding who Drake is behind the scenes hasn’t worn off entirely yet. And with his back against the wall, the Canadian superstar finally has the opportunity to get on the offensive line.

The launch of the 100 Gigs, through the @plottttwistttttt account, has marked a second wind in what appears to be another chapter in the storied journey of Drake’s career. The first drop, which arrived at the top of August, included three new songs, “It’s Up” ft. Young Thug & 21 Savage, “Red Blue Green,” and “Housekeeping Knows” ft. Latto and hours of unreleased footage that shared a behind-the-scenes look at the making of beloved records and albums, his travels across the world, moments with his family, and brushing shoulders with celebrity friends. Though the music itself sounded as generic as a ChatGPT prompt to create a Drake song, the moments where he’s playing ping-pong with Stephen Curry, conversing with his mom during the “Hotline Bling” session about Serena Williams, or putting the final touches on albums like Scorpion with 40 humanizes him with glimpses of the artist that we initially grew to love. 

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But the second batch feels a bit more sinister. With plenty of hints towards a second round, the release of “No Face” and “Circadian Rhythm” felt like the beginning of a new chapter where Drake wants his lick back. The former is much more confrontational and aggressive, anchored by the industrial-leaning synths and a minimal yet effective inclusion of Playboi Carti. But beyond that, the record is opening up the floodgates to another round with a bit more preparation behind it. “Try to knock the Boy but f*ck it, I’m stayin’ on,” he raps. “It’s so many people we turnin’ the tables on/ Capo got plans, but we’ll save that for later on/ Hush’ll keep sayin’ they know that they played it wrong.” Add to the fact that recently surfaced footage of Drake and 40 discussing a potential collaboration with Kendrick surfaced (dating back to 2012-2013), it’s clear that Drake is hinting that he has some sort of bombshell in the cut, whether new music or footage, that might finally debunk conspiracies that he has a hidden 11-year-old daughter, which is literally the least concerning aspect of “meet the grahams.”

Internet sleuths might get stuck in a rabbit hole trying to crack the hidden messages intertwined in diss songs and social media posts. Or maybe, the speculation could end with the next 100 Gigs content dump. Ultimately, the recent string of releases shouldn’t be overlooked as an attempt to move past the narrative but rather, an attempt to take control of it. We’re either on the receiving end of an album that will fan the flames of criticism or witness the unfolding of a diabolical plan that will plant Drake’s foot on the neck of Kendrick Lamar and everyone else who chose a side.

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