Drake and Kendrick Lamar are embroiled in one of the wildest rap beefs of the 21st century, but what’s it all about? When did it all begin? Who’s to blame?
I’ll do my best to break down a timeline, albeit I’m just a music fan who wants everybody to write songs and get along — but we’re far from the days of peace.
Drake (real name Aubrey Graham) is one of the biggest rappers in the game, who went from acting on Degrassi: The Next Generation to being one of the most-streamed award-winning hip-hop artists in the world.
Kendrick Lamar (last name Duckworth) is also one of the biggest rappers in the game, who not only snagged some of the most coveted awards — not just Grammys, but a Pulitzer Prize for Music.
The bottom line is that Drake and Kendrick are two of the hottest acts in rap. But the hip-hop heavyweights have gone from chill collaborations to nasty allegations over the years. What started as a promising partnership spiraled into a bitter rivalry.
In November 2011, Drake’s second album, Take Care, featured Kendrick on “Buried Alive Interlude.” At this time, Kendrick had just released his debut album, Section.80.
In February 2012, Kendrick opened for Drake on the Club Paradise Tour alongside A$AP Rocky.
Later that year, the three rappers collaborated on several songs together. A$AP Rocky’s “Fuckin’ Problems” featured Drake, Kendrick, and 2 Chainz. And “Poetic Justice” from Kendrick’s second album, Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, featured Drake.
In August 2013, Kendrick was featured on Big Sean’s “Control,” a promotional single from his second album Hall of Fame (the track was later cut due to sampling issues). The California rapper took shots at artists like J. Cole, Meek Mill, Pusha T, A$AP Rocky, Jay Electronica, and even Big Sean, rapping, “trying to make sure your core fans never heard of you.”
That same month, in a Billboard cover story, Drake responded, “I know good and well that he’s not murdering me, at all, in any platform. So when that day presents itself, I guess we can revisit the topic.”
Later that year, Kendrick continued to take subtle musical jabs when he seemingly referenced Drake during the 2013 BET Hip-Hop Awards Cypher, noting that his feature on “Control” had other rappers hot and bothered, most notably Drake.
In 2015, Kendrick seemingly called out Drake over ghostwriting allegations on “King Kunta” from his third album, To Pimp a Butterfly.
In the same year, Drake seemingly countered on a feature from The Game’s “100,” saying if he “didn’t go pop” and “stay on some conscious shit,” he would have everyone’s fans.
Fast-forward to October 2023, when Drake and J. Cole teamed up for “First Person Shooter” from Drake’s eighth album, For All the Dogs. J. Cole rapped the lyrics, “Love when they argue the hardest MC / Is it K-Dot? Is it Aubrey? Or me? / We the big three like we started a league / but right now, I feel like Muhammad Ali.”
March 2024, Kendrick was featured on Future & Metro Boomin’s “Like That” from the collaborative album We Don’t Trust You. Kendrick fired back at the “Big 3” claims, rapping, “Motherfuck the big three, nigga, it’s just big me.” His verse also included references to Drake’s latest album.
Drake apparently responded during the Sunrise, Florida show of his It’s All A Blur — Big as the What Tour, saying, “I got my fucking head up high, my back straight, I’m 10 fucking toes down in Florida or anywhere else I go, and I know that no matter what, there’s not a nigga on this earth that could ever fuck with me in my life. And that’s how I want you to walk outta here tonight.”
Then, in a matter of days, J. Cole released an unreleased track, “7 Minute Drill,” in response to Kendrick’s diss. It was initially featured on his fourth mixtape, Might Delete Later. He claimed that his spirit didn’t feel right being involved in the beef with Kendrick, and apologized.
In April 2024, Drake released two diss tracks on streaming services: “Push Ups” and “Taylor Made Freestyle.” While the first diss track apparently fired at Rick Ross, Metro Boomin, Future, and The Weeknd, the follow-up was clearly for Kendrick.
On April 30, Kendrick responded with a six-minute diss track titled “Euphoria,” which suddenly dug deeper into criticism of Drake, including his ethnicity, appearance, and hip-hop credibility.
A couple of days later, Kendrick dropped another diss track titled “6:16 in LA,” taking shots at not only Drake but his entire record label OVO. He claimed that there was even a mole in Drake’s camp.
The next day, Kendrick responded with another diss track, “Meet the Grahams,” that made accusations against Drake’s family life, including allegedly hiding his daughter from the public.
Finally, less than 24 hours later, Kendrick released another diss track, “Not Like Us,” doubling down on every accusation from the previous tracks.
Drake appeared unfazed by the onslaught of diss tracks, posting to Instagram, “Nahhhh hold on can someone find my hidden daughter pls and send her to me… these guys are in shambles.”
