Kendrick Lamar struck back on Tuesday, April 30th to recent Drake responses “ Drop Down and Give Me 50,” and “Taylor Made,” with his ego-checking attack titled “Euphoria.”
The response has been fulfilling to many hip-hop enthusiasts who are glad to see these two rap titans finally going head-to-head. And though other artists such as J. Cole, who apologized after his “7-minute drill,” diss to Kendrick, which he took off DSP’s (Digital Streaming Platforms) soon after releasing, as well as Rick Ross, Future, the Weekend, and Metro Boomin are involved with this battle, and Kanye West who submitted a shot at Drake as well on the “Like That,” remix, in what feels like a rap “ Royal Rumble.”
It’s time for the two big dogs to show who has the bigger bite.
The history between Kendrick Lamar and Drake goes back over a decade. They have collaborated on “Poetic Justice,” off the Good Kid m.A.A.d City album, and Drake brought him on tour the same year. However, it seems that when Kendrick dropped “Control,” in 2013 with Big Sean and called out some of the greats of the time including Meek Mill, Pusha T, Drake, and J Cole, and became bigger and more regarded by the culture, winning Grammy awards for good kid, m.A.A.d city, Damn, and Mr.Morale and the Big Steppers. Drake began to view him more as a bigger threat for his leading spot as the premier rapper of this generation.
When Drake dropped “First Person Shooter,” at the end of 2023 with J. Cole, the verses especially from Cole came off as complimentary but dismissive, “we the big three like we started a league,” referring to greatness of trio in one breath and in the another verse he says “everybody steppers but a everybody breakfast,” a reference to Kendrick’s Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers album. Kendrick responded to “First Person shooter, “with “ Like That,” with Future and Metro Boomin a scathing attack at Drake, and J. Cole “ Motherf*ck the big 3, it’s just big Me”… and “ For all you dogs getting buried, that’s a K with all these 9’s, he going to see pet cemetery,” which is a direct reference to Drake’s “For All the Dogs album.”
So here we are with a Kendrick response that is etheresque like Nas did Jay Z. Kendrick challenges’ Drake’s morals, parenting skills, and character as a man.
The line that stood out to me the most off Euphoria, “It’s not just me, it’s what the culture’s feeling,” in describing the disdain artists and fans have for Drake. When you dissect a man the way Kendrick did, you break him down to his very essence, beyond the money and record sales. And similar to the way Pusha T revealed on “The Story Of Adidon, ”that Drake was hiding a child, Drake has been pounced on again. The tide had turned in K.Dot’s favor. And it would take a much deeper and venomous response from Drake to swing the pendulum back in his direction.
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