Kendrick Lamar and Drake’s Beef and Diss Tracks From “6:16 in LA” to “Push Ups,” Explained

• Kendrick Lamar dropped a second diss track aimed at Drake, as their beef rages on.
• Drake insulted Lamar in his two latest tracks, “Push Ups” and “Taylor Made Freestyle.”
• Drake is also feuding with multiple other artists, including Metro Boomin, the Weekend, and A$AP Rocky.

Kendrick Lamar dropped a second diss track aimed at Drake three days after his first track, “Euphoria,” was praised by the hip-hop community.

Lamar and Drake’s long-running beef reignited in March when Lamar dissed Drake and J. Cole on Future and Metro Boomin’s track “Like That” from their latest collaborative album, “We Don’t Trust You.”

In April, the feud widened when Future and Metro Boomin released another album, “We Still Don’t Trust You,” featuring the Weeknd, A$AP Rocky, Rick Ross, J. Cole — and more insults aimed at Drake.

Refusing to stand down, Drake released two diss tracks on April 19, “Push Ups” and “Taylor Made Freestyle,” which hit out at Lamar, Cole, the Weeknd, Future, Metro Boomin, and Rick Ross.

On April 30, Lamar broke his silence on the feud by releasing “Euphoria,” which fans believe is named after the hit HBO show that Drake executive produces.

Lamar’s clever lyricism was widely praised, and fans quickly switched sides to support the “Loyalty” rapper.

Then, on May 3, Lamar released “6:16 in LA” before Drake had a chance to respond. In the song, Lamar claims there are moles in Drake’s entourage who want to see his downfall.

Although the tension seems genuine, feuds can be a clever marketing tactic to help artists boost streams and sales. “Like That,” for instance, topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart for weeks, and “We Don’t Trust You” debuted at the No.1 spot on the Billboard 200.

Here’s what to know about the feud taking over hip-hop.

Drake and Lamar have been making digs at each other since 2013

 

 

Lamar and Drake started as friends, with Lamar opening for Drake’s “Club Paradise” tour in 2012. The pair’s feud began when Lamar rapped that he was better than all the rising rap stars, including Drake and Cole when he featured on Big Sean’s 2013 song “Control.”

“And that goes for Jermaine Cole, Big K.R.I.T., Wale, Pusha T, Meek Millz, A$AP Rocky, Drake, Big Sean, Jay Electron’, Tyler, Mac Miller / I got love for you all, but I’m tryna murder you n*****,” he rapped.

Drake appeared to respond on the track “The Language” from his 2013 album, “Nothing Was the Same,” rapping: “I don’t know why they have been lyin’ but your shit is not that inspirin’/ Bank account statement just look like I’m ready for early retirement / Fuck any n**** that’s talking that shit just to get a reaction.”

The two rappers last featured on the same song in 2013 and, since then, have made small digs at each other in their tracks and interviews.

In 2015, many fans believe that Lamar accused Drake of using a ghostwriter, pointing to Lamar’s 2015 track “King Kunta,” where he raps, “I can dig rappin’, but a rapper with a ghostwriter? / What the fuck happened?”

Lamar hasn’t confirmed if the “King Kunta” lyric is about Drake.

Later that year, Meek Mill also accused Drake of using a ghostwriter in a since-deleted post on X, which Drake denied in a 2019 interview with Rap Radar.

The pair have also taken different paths artistically, with Lamar earning critical acclaim, including winning a Pulitzer prize for “Damn” in 2018 and 17 Grammys. Drake is more commercially successful, with 15 songs with over a billion streams on Spotify compared to Kendrick’s five.

Cole entered the beef after appearing on Drake’s ‘For All The Dogs’

 

 

Drake’s 2023 track “First Person Shooter,” featuring Cole, is all about the two being the greatest rappers ever. Cole, who is friends with Lamar, references him in the song when talking about being the “Big 3” of the Hip Hop world.

“Love when they argue the hardest MC / Is it K-Dot? Is it Aubrey? Or me?” Cole raps, referring to Lamar’s nickname, “K-Dot,” and Drake’s birth name Aubrey. “We the big three like we started a league, but right now, I feel like Muhammad Ali.”

Lamar was rumored to be featured in the song too, though that never materialized.

Drake ends the song by comparing his success to that of the late Michael Jackson, who is the sixth best-selling artist of all time. In October 2023, Drake scored his 13th Billboard Hot 100 No.1, tying with Jackson.

Lamar’s verse in “Like That” alludes to those lyrics, the song title “First Person Shooter,” and Drake’s 2023 album title, “For All the Dogs.”

“Motherfuck the big three, n****, it’s just big me,” Lamar raps, adding later. “Fuck sneak dissin’, first-person shooter, I hope they came with three switches.”

“N****, Prince outlived Mike Jack’,” Lamar raps later, referencing a 2017 song, “Mask Off (Remix),” where he compares himself to Prince. Prince and Jackson also had a long-standing beef when they were alive.

Lamar ends the verse referencing Drake’s latest album: “‘Fore all your dogs gettin’ buried /That’s a K with all these nines, he gon’ see Pet Sematary (Yeah).”

A week after the song dropped in March, Drake appeared to respond to Lamar during a concert in Florida as part of his “It’s All A Blur Tour: Big As In What?” with Cole.

“A lot of people ask me how I’m feeling. I’mma let you know I’m feeling,” Drake said in a video shared on X. “I got my fucking head up high, my back straight, I’m 10 fucking toes down in Florida and anywhere else I go. And I know that no matter what, it’s not a n**** on this earth that could ever fuck with me in my life!”

Cole fired back at Lamar, then apologized two days later

 

 

Cole did not publicly comment on Lamar’s “Like That” verse until April 5, when he released a 12-track EP, “Might Delete Later,” featuring Gucci Mane, Ari Lennox, and others.

The first verse of the final track, “7 Minute Drill,” appears to be a direct response to Lamar, who Cole implies is losing popularity. Rolling Stone’s Andre Gee wrote that the title refers to a military drill in which officers have to explain how to respond to an enemy attack.

“He still doin’ shows, but fell off like the Simpsons / Your first shit was classic, your last shit was tragic / Your second shit put n***** to sleep, but they gassed it / Your third shit was massive and that was your prime / I was trailin’ right behind and I just now hit mine,” Cole raps.

Fans think Cole’s bar about Lamar’s second album references the critically-acclaimed “To Pimp a Butterfly,” as most people don’t count 2011’s “Section.80” as his first. “Good Kid, M.A.A.D City,” is Lamar’s actual second album.

Rolling Stone’s Gee and Pitchfork’s Alphonse Pierre panned Cole’s track for not being aggressive enough.

“He doesn’t have the heart for the lying, disrespect, and animosity it requires to make an effective diss track,” Pierre wrote.

Two days after the song was released, Cole apologized to Lamar during his performance at the Dreamville Festival in Raleigh, North Carolina. It came after hip-hop’s loudest voices, namely Joe Budden, expected Cole to continue the beef onstage. Instead, he shocked the hip-hop world and apologized.

“I just want to come up here and publicly be like bruh, that was the lamest, goofiest shit,” Cole said in a video shared on X. “And I pray that y’all are like, forgive a n**** for the misstep and I can get back to my true path. Because I ain’t gonna lie to y’all. The past two days felt terrible.”

Cole said he felt conflicted because he respected Lamar but felt pressure from his peers and fans to respond.

Cole said his diss verse, and the discourse surrounding it, didn’t “sit right with my spirit,” adding that he hoped Lamar, who he describes as “one of the greatest motherfucker’s to ever touch a fuckin’ microphone,” wasn’t hurt by his words.

“If he did, my n****, I got my chin out. Take your best shot, I’ma take that shit on the chin boy, do what you do. All good. It’s love,” he said.

Representatives for Lamar and Cole did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

Future and Metro Boomin stirred more trouble with ‘We Still Don’t Trust You’

 

 

On April 12, Future and Metro Boomin released their second collaborative album, “We Still Don’t Trust You.” While neither rapper directly dissed Drake, they enlisted The Weeknd and A$AP Rocky to do their bidding. Ross and Cole also appear on the album but don’t diss Drake.

In the track “All To Myself,” The Weeknd references declining to sign with Drake’s OVO label, which has led to a frostiness between the two Canadian stars.

“They could never diss my brothers, baby / When they got leaks in the operation / I thank God that I never signed my life away / And we never do the big talk / They shooters makin’ TikToks / Got us laughin’ in the Lambo,” The Weeknd rapped.

 

 

On the track “Show of Hands,” Rocky references the rumor that he slept with Sophie Brussaux, the mother of Drake’s child Adonis, before the “God’s Plan” rapper.

“N****s in they feelings over women, what, you hurt or something? / I smash before you birthed, son, Flacko hit it first, son,” Rocky rapped.

Rocky and Drake were also friends until the “Fuckin’ Problems” rapper began to date Rihanna, who had an on-again-off-again relationship with Drake.

On the “For All the Dogs” track “Fear of Heights,” Drake disses both stars, saying sex with Rihanna was “average” and that Rocky is now stuck with her since they have children together.

A diss track from Drake appeared online – but fans first thought it was AI-generated

 

 

On April 13, after the release of “We Still Don’t Trust You,” a diss track surfaced on social media that appeared to have been recorded by Drake.

At first, some fans were convinced that the song “Push Ups” was another fake AI Drake track.

Drake appeared to allude to the track being genuine when he shared an Instagram story post of a scene from “Kill Bill,” where multiple enemies with swords surround Uma Thurman’s character, The Bride.

Although Drake spends most of the four-minute track dissing Lamar, there are a few shots fired at The Weeknd, Ross, Cole, Future, and Metro Boomin.

Drake mocked Lamar’s latest album, “Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers,” his appearances on Maroon 5 and Taylor Swift’s pop songs, and suggested that Lamar’s former label, Top Dawg Entertainment, took 50% of profits from the “Humble” rapper’s songs.

“How the fuck you big steppin’ with a size 7 men’s on? / Your last one bricked, you not on shit,” Drake rapped. “Maroon 5 need a verse, you better make it witty / Then we need a verse for the Swifties / Top say drop, you better drop and give him 50.”

Drake also rapped that SZA, Travis Scott, and 21 Savage were bigger names in the hip-hop world than Lamar.

Later in the track, Drake references Cole’s diss track and apology.

“And that fuckin’ song y’all got is not starting beef with us / This shit brewin’ in a pot, now I’m heating up / I don’t care what Cole thinks, that Dot shit was weak as fuck,” Drake rapped.

 

 

Later in the track, Drake raps that he gave Future his first No. 1 hit, referring to Drake’s 2021 song “Way 2 Sexy,” which he features on. Drake also says The Weeknd wastes his money, and Metro Boomin should “shut your ho ass up and make some drums, n****.”

Aiming Ross, he says the 48-year-old rapper is too old to join the rap beef and owes his chart success to him. Drake also appears to reference Ross’ friendship with Diddy, who was accused of sexual misconduct by four people in the last year.

“Spend that lil’ check you got and stay up out my business / Worry ’bout whatever goin’ on with you and…,” Drake says, trailing off at the end.

Rocky was the only one spared from the track.

Ross quickly recorded and released a response, “Champagne Moments,” where he calls Drake a “white boy,” claims the rapper got a nose job and stole his flow from Lil Wayne. Ross also repeats the ghostwriter allegations and has continued to make fun of Drake’s nose on social media.

On April 14, Drake shared a text message with his mother in which she asked about the nose job rumor. Drake responded in the message that Ross is just “angry and racist” and he’ll “handle it,” which may mean their feud will continue.

Drake officially released “Push Ups” and another track aimed at Lamar

 

 

On April 19, a week after the leak, Drake officially released “Push Ups” alongside a new diss track directed at Lamar called “Taylor Made Freestyle.”

In the latter track, Drake taunts Lamar to respond to “Push Ups,” mocks Lamar’s complex rap verses, and says the rapper is a puppet of the industry and Swift.

For the track, Drake used AI to generate the voices of the late Tupac Shakur, widely considered one of the greatest rappers of all time, and Snoop Dogg, making it sound like they rapped the first two verses.

Drake’s use of Tupac may be a reference to Lamar’s track “Mortal Man,” from his 2015 album “To Pimp a Butterfly.” At the end of the track, Lamar samples a 1994 Tupac interview to simulate a conversation between the two rappers.

Some fans criticized the use of AI in “Taylor Made Freestyle” particularly as Tupac was unable to consent.

Snoop responded to the song on April 20 in a jokey Instagram video where he reacts to people messaging him about Drake using his voice.

“They did what? When? How? Are you sure?” he says. “I’m going back to bed. Good night.”

On April 24, Billboard reported that Tupac’s estate had sent a cease-and-desist letter to Drake for using his voice.

“The Estate is deeply dismayed and disappointed by your unauthorized use of Tupac’s voice and personality,” the estate’s lawyer Howard King said. “Not only is the record a flagrant violation of Tupac’s publicity and the estate’s legal rights, it is also a blatant abuse of the legacy of one of the greatest hip-hop artists of all time. The Estate would never have given its approval for this use.”

Two days later, Drake removed the song from social media and streaming platforms, though copies of the song are still available online.

Lamar spelled out the things he hates about Drake in the song “Euphoria”

 

 

On Tuesday, Lamar released “Euphoria,” a damning six-minute response to Drake.

In the track, Lamar calls Drake a “scam artist,” “a master manipulator and habitual liar,” mocks the Canadian rapper for imitating Black American culture, and claims that the “One Dance” artist has 20 ghostwriters. Lamar also says he is a better father than Drake.

Halfway through the track, Lamar raps: “I hate the way that you walk, the way that you talk, I hate the way that you dress / I hate the way that you sneak diss, if I catch a flight, it’s gon’ be direct / We hate the bitches you fuck, ’cause they confuse themself with real women.”

‘Fans also believe the lyrics “Have you ever paid five hundred thou’ like to an open case?” refer to Drake paying 532,000 New Zealand dollars in 2019 to a woman who accused him of sexual assault. Drake denied the claim at the time.

Later in the track, Lamar hits out at Drake’s use of AI in “Taylor Made Freestyle.”

“I’d rather do that than let a Canadian n**** make Pac turn in his grave,” Lamar raps, later adding. “Am I battlin’ ghost or AI?”

Lamar also implies that Drake sent a cease-and-desist letter to get “Like That,” the song that reignited the beef, removed.

“Try cease on the ‘Like That’ record? / Ho, what? You ain’t like that record?” Lamar raps on the track.

In response to the song, Drake continued to taunt Lamar by posting a clip from “10 Things I Hate About You” on his Instagram story.

Lamar warned Drake about enemies in his entourage in his latest track, “6:16 in LA”

“6:16 in LA,” released May 3, is a shorter track than “Euphoria” and only features one verse.

Lamar begins the verse rapping about his success before turning his attention to Drake. Instead of insulting Drake, Lamar claims that the “Push Ups” rapper’s circle has been feeding him lies, leaking information about him, and hoping for his downfall.

“Have you ever thought that OVO was workin’ for me? / Fake bully, I hate bullies, you must be a terrible person / Everyone inside your team is whispering that you deserve it,” Lamar rapped.

Later, he continues: “A humid niggas that you got on salary, and twenty of ’em want you as a casualty / And one of them is, next to you / And two of them is practically tied to your lifestyle, just don’t get the audacity to tell you.”

Fans believe Lamar’s lyric, “It was fun until you start to put money in the streets / Then lost money, ’cause they came back with no receipts,” implies that Drake tried to pay for dirt on the “DNA” rapper.

Later in the track, Lamar also calls out Drake for “playin’ dirty” in his feuds by enlisting the help of Twitter bots and celebrities like Zack Bia to stir public opinion against his enemies.

“But your reality can’t hide behind Wi-Fi / Your lil’ memes are losing steam, they figured you out,” Lamar added.

The diss track’s layers go beyond the lyrics, as fans have been analyzing the cover art, the track’s title, and even the producers. “6:16” was Tupac’s birthday, but it is also Father’s Day, which relates to Lamar’s taunts about Drake’s parenting skills. “6:16 in LA” also parodies Drake’s song titles, which often feature location names and timestamps.

The song is co-produced by Jack Antonoff, Swift’s longtime producer and friend, which is likely aimed at Drake’s Taylor Swift disses.

Meanwhile, the cover art features a black leather glove with a Maybach logo on it. The black leather glove could refer to Drake’s 2020 song “Toosie Slide,” where the rapper compares himself to Michael Jackson in the line “Black leather glove, no sequins.”

Meanwhile, the logo could refer to Rick Ross’ music label, Maybach Music Group.

Now, all eyes are on Drake as rap fans wait for his response.