So what’s their beef?
Why is everyone talking about Drake and Kendrick?
They are two of the most successful musicians in the world. Drake, a 37-year-old Toronto rapper, has five Grammys and 29 Billboard awards under his belt and is the most streamed male artist of all time on Spotify. Meanwhile Lamar, 36, from Compton, California, has won 17 Grammys and is the only musician outside of classical and jazz to be awarded a Pulitzer prize.
The pair have used rapid-fire diss tracks to sling mud at each other. It began with insults, but took a darker turn, with allegations of serious crimes such as domestic abuse and paedophilia. Both men deny any wrongdoing. The tracks have racked up millions of streams, and Lamar’s Not Like Us is currently Spotify’s most streamed song, with 12 million plays a day.
On Tuesday, a security guard was shot and seriously injured outside Drake’s Toronto home, which appeared on the cover art for Not Like Us. The following day, a person was apprehended after they sought to access Drake’s home.
What’s the background?
Drake and Lamar began their relationship with a collaboration. Their sounds are quite different: Drake’s is more sound, while Lamar’s music is more lyrical and conceptual. In 2011, they were both predicted to become the next rap superstars after the success of their debut albums.
Drake even invited Lamar to open for him on his Club Paradise tour. Lamar has even said that he and Drake “clicked immedately” when they met.
But their relationship soured after Lamar featured on Big Sean’s track, Control, in 2013. In it, the Californian called himself the “King of New York” and namechecked contemporary rappers, among them, Drake, saying “I got love for you all but I’m tryna murder you.”
Soon after, Drake responded: “I know good and well that Kendrick’s not murdering me, at all, in any platform.”
Since then, the barbs have flowed with increasing frequency and venom. Nadia Khomami