Drake Vs Kendrick Lamar: The Biggest Rap Rivalry In Recent Times Explained

Drake and Kendrick Lamar, both undisputed heavy weights in the world of rap and Hip-Hop, made their mark in contemporary music, around the same time - the early 2010s. Incidentally, the duo have also worked together in the past. Drake’s 2011 album, Take Care, features Lamar on an interlude. Likewise, Lamar had Drake on his second studio album, 2012’s Good Kid, M.A.A.D City - specifically the song Poetic Justice. However, things as of today, appear far from a point of collaboration, let alone reconciliation.

The first act

In 2013, Kendrick Lamar featured in Big Sean's track, Control. The track saw Lamar call out several rappers including Drake - Drake however, let this one slide. Fast forward to 2018, Lamar won the Pulitzer Prize for his album DAMN, also publicly taking offence to the fact that many considered Drake to be on the same level as him - something he spelled out in Future's song Like That. Around this time, J Cole briefly entered the simmering feud, with track 7 Minute Drill from his surprise album Might Delete Later. Cole sided with Drake, dissing Lamar.

Drake finally hit back at Lamar, with not one, but two diss tracks - Push Ups and Taylor Made Freestyle. Drake particularly looked down upon Lamar's collaborations on pop songs. He even challenged Lamar to push the feud further, with the line 'While we wait on you, I guess' in Taylor Made Freestyle. Lamar's next response, truly upped the stakes, for the sheer amount of direct references it made to Drake. Called Euphoria, the track's title itself was directed at Drake, considering his status as executive producer on the series of the same name.

More recent developments

The same week as Lamar releasing Euphoria, the rapper doubled down on Drake with yet another track, 6:16 in LA. 6:16 was understood as a reference to Bible verse, Corinthians 6:16. The way Lamar used it implied Drake's reportedly consistent involvement with prostitutes. Drake came right back with song Family Matters, which questioned the paternity of Lamar's child with fiance Whitney Alford. Less than an hour later, Lamar hit back with song Meet The Grahams, which started with the rapper apologising to Drake's son for having Drake as a father. The song also compared Drake to sex offender Harvey Weinstein.

Less than 24 hours later, Lamar came right back with a second track - four-and-a-half minutes long - implying Drake's alleged interest in underage girls. The latest development in this saga, has been Drake's The Heart Part 6 which primarily refuted Lamar's previously stated claims. Drake also declared how he intentionally shared fake information with Lamar to see if he fell for it. This verbal duel, for all practical purposes, appears to be a developing story.