There's no denying that Drake and Kendrick Lamar's beef is one of the most high-profile feuds in Hip-Hop.
What started out as a debate over the order of the Big 3 turned into a wild exchange between two of the greatest rappers of this generation. Within the past seven months, rap fans have been at the edge of their seats as Drizzy and K. Dot fired several tactical diss tracks at each other. After Dot got namedropped on Drake and J. Cole's "First Person Shooter," the Compton rapper finally returned fire at both of them on Future and Metro Boomin's "Like That." His scathing verse was the spark that ignited the great rap war of 2024.
Pluto, Metro and Kendrick weren't the only artists who wanted all the smoke with Drake. The WE DON'T TRUST YOU duo also enlisted other artists who had their own respective issues with Drake including A$AP Rocky, The Weeknd and Rick Ross. They all made jabs at Drizzy on both of Future and Metro's albums. Rozay took things further by dropping his own diss track.
Drake and Kendrick Lamar's beef didn't happen overnight; it's the result of mounting transgressions that have been building up for over a decade. It might be difficult to follow all the updates, especially if you're not a fan of Hip-Hop. If you're trying to catch up, scroll below for a complete timeline of Drake and Kendrick Lamar's beef so far.
August 12, 2013: Big Sean debuts "Control" with Kendrick Lamar & Jay Electronica
Drake and Kendrick Lamar used to be cool with one another, but that all changed in the summer of 2013. Longtime rap fans will never forget where they were when they heard Big Sean's "Control" for the first time. Sean Don delivered his massive collaboration with Kendrick Lamar and Jay Electronica. Midway through "Control," K. Dot dissed Sean and Jay Elect plus Drake, J. Cole and other prominent artists. At the time, Drizzy and Dot had just collaborated on "Poetic Justice," and also appeared on A$AP Rocky's "F**kin Problems" with 2 Chainz in 2012. While some artists responded to K. Dot, Drake decided not to feed into the drama. Although he let K. Dot slide, Drake found himself focusing on other grand-scale beefs with Meek Mill and Pusha T.
"I'm usually homeboys with the same n***as I'm rhymin' with/But this is hip-hop, and them n***as should know what time it is," Kendrick raps. "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***as/Tryna make sure your core fans never heard of you n***as."
October 6, 2023: Drake drops "First Person Shooter" featuring J. Cole
Drake and J. Cole gave fans a real treat when dropped "First Person Shooter." It was their first collaboration in 10 years following their work on "Jodeci Freestyle." On the track off Drizzy's For All The Dogs, the duo basically compare their legacies and debate over who's the G.O.A.T. in Hip-Hop. In his verse, Cole mentions K. Dot by name when he brings up the Big 3, and then claimed he was No. 1.
"Love when they argue the hardest MC/Is it K. Dot? Is it Aubrey? Or me?" Cole raps. "We the big three like we started a league, but right now, I feel like Muhammad Ali."
Drake declined to take any direct shots, but the song alone was enough to wake up the beast within Kendrick. The debate continued among fans for months until Lamar finally fired back.
March 22, 2024: Future and Metro Boomin team up with Kendrick Lamar on "Like That"
Kendrick Lamar shocked every rap fan when he called out both Drake and J. Cole on Future and Metro Boomin's "Like That" off their joint album WE DON'T TRUST YOU. K. Dot didn't hold back as he retaliated against both MC's with lines like "F**k sneak dissin', first-person shooter, I hope they came with three switches/I crash out like, 'F**k rap,' diss Melle Mel if I had to." The song had rap nerds researching every bar from Lamar's verse from his reference to Michael Jackson and Prince's feud to Drake's affiliation with Nike ("It's a lot of goofies with a check").
"Motherf**k the big three, n***a, it's just big me," he continues. "What? I'm really like that/And your best work is a light pack/N***a, Prince outlived Mike Jack'/'Fore all your dogs gettin' buried/That's a K with all these nines, he gon' see Pet Sematary."
March 23, 2024: Drake appears to react to Kendrick Lamar's verse for the first time
Less than 24 hours after the song dropped, Drake began the final stretch of his "It's All A Blur - Big As The What?" Tour with Lil Wayne and Lil Durk in Florida. Since it was the first time he was on stage following the diss, Drizzy told the crowd exactly how he was feeling that night. He didn't even have to mention any names because fans already knew who he was referring to.
“A lot of people ask me how I’m feeling... I’ma let you know I’m feeling," Drake said. "Listen, the same way I’m feeling is the same way I want you to walk out this building tonight... I got my f**king head up high, my back straight, I’m 10 f**king toes down in Florida and anywhere else I go! And I know that no matter what, there’s not a n***a on this Earth that could ever f**k with me in my life!”
April 5, 2024: J. Cole responds to Kendrick Lamar on "7 Minute Drill"
J. Cole was the first to respond to Kendrick Lamar on his surprise album Might Delete Later. On his song "7 Minute Drill," Cole went all the way in on Kendrick for the first time ever and questioned his iconic catalog. The Dreamville founder said he's still cool with the Compton rapper, but he made it clear that he will humble Dot on the mic if necessary. Fans praised Cole for his swift response while anticipating Drake's next move.
"Your first s**t was classic, your last s**t was tragic," Cole spits over the T-Minus & Conductor Williams-produced beat. "Your second s**t put n***as to sleep, but they gassed it/Your third s**t was massive and that was your prime, I was trailin' right behind and I just now hit mine/Now I'm front of the line with a comfortable lead/How ironic, soon as I got it, now he want somethin' with me."
April 7, 2024: J. Cole apologizes to Kendrick Lamar and takes down "7 Minute Drill"
J. Cole didn't last long in the Big 3's internal conflict. Although he was the first to respond, Cole was also the first to bow out of the beef just as it was heating up. During his highly-anticipated set at Dreamville Fest, Cole got fans excited when he performed songs off the album like "Crocodile Tearz" and "H.Y.B" with Central Cee so they expected to witness the live debut of "7 Minute Drill." Unfortunately, he let all the fans down. The crowd was completely mum as he explained why the song was the "lamest s**t" he had ever done. He apologized to Kendrick on stage and instructed his team to take the record down.
"I pray that my n***a didn't feel no way and if he did my n***a I got my chin out, take your best shot ima take that s**t on the chin boy do what you do," he told the crowd. "All good. It's love and I pray that y'all are like forgive a n***a for the misstep and I can get back to my true path cause I ain't gonna lie to y'all the past two days felt terrible."
April 12, 2024: Future & Metro Boomin drop "Show Of Hands" with A$AP Rocky and "All To Myself" with The Weeknd
Future and Metro Boomin continued their lyrical assault on Drake on their second joint album WE STILL DON'T TRUST YOU. Pluto and Metro brought back The Weeknd, who did more than just sing some hooks on the project. On the song "All To Myself," Abel takes direct aim at the OVO Sound co-founder and claimed there were rats in his camp.
"They could never diss my brothers, baby," Abel croons. "When they got leaks in they 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."
Later on, A$AP Rocky appears on "Show Of Hands." Rocky and Drake's hate runs deep especially after the Harlemite swooped the girl of Drizzy's dreams Rihanna off her feet. Rocky also reportedly had a relationship with the mother of Drake's son Adonis. Rocky used both women to his advantage as he dissed Drake on the song.
"N***as swear they b***h the baddest, I just bagged the worst one," Rocky spit. "N***as in they feelings over women, what, you hurt or somethin'?/I smash before you birthed, son, Flacko hit it first, son/Still don' trust you, it's always us, never them/Heard you dropped your latest s**t/Funny how it just came and went."
April 13, 2024: Drake drops his first response to Kendrick Lamar "Push Ups"
22 days after "Like That" rocked the world, Drake finally fired back with his scathing response "Push Ups." The song originally leaked online with a different instrumental before DJ Akademiks played the official version on his stream. As soon as DJ Whoo Kid's tag kicked off the record, fans knew it was going to be fire. The lengthy response made some pretty wild claims about Kendrick's shoe size and his deal with Top Dawg Entertainment. He also fired shots at Metro Boomin, Rick Ross and The Weeknd.
"What the f**k is this, a twenty-v-one, n***a?/What's a prince to a king? He a son, n***a," Drake raps. "Get more love in the city that you from, n***a/Metro, shut your ho ass up and make some drums, n***a/Yeah, I'm the 6ix God, I'm the frontrunner/Y'all n***a manager was Chubbs lil' blunt runner/Claim the 6ix and you boys ain't even come from it/And when you boys got rich, you had to run from it/Cash blowin' Abel bread, out here trickin."
April 13, 2024: Rick Ross disses Drake in record time on "Champagne Moments"
Rick Ross didn't waste any time in firing back at Drake. Two hours after "Push Ups" dropped, Rozay was already teasing his diss track "Champagne Moments." The song's producer Mini Boom and his pops Benny Boom told iHeartRadio they sent Rozay and his engineer TropDavinci the now-infamous instrumental in a beat pack with hopes that the MMG founder would hop on Mini Boom's upcoming album. Ross originally intended to use the beat for a collaboration with Benny The Butcher, but the plans changed after they heard the diss.
"Like his moves, but he never had to fight in school," Rozay spits. "Always ran, another n***a had to write your grooves/Flow is copy-and-paste, Weezy gave you the juice/Another white boy at the park wanna hang with the crew."
The song was out on streaming services two days later and the music video debuted the following week. In the weeks after his diss dropped, Ross continued to berate Drake on social media. He coined the phrases "BBL Drizzy" and "Cupcake Drake," which instantly went viral among his fans and Drake's haters.
April 19, 2024: Drake drops his second response "Taylor Made Freestyle"
After spending nearly a week taunting Kendrick into responding on social media, Drake pushed more buttons with his "Taylor Made Freestyle." The Canadian rapper used AI-generated verses from the late Tupac Shakur and Snoop Dogg, who encouraged K. Dot to respond while slinging some backhanded compliments at him. Drake chimes in at the end of the song and essentially claims Kendrick is a simp for allegedly waiting to drop his response after Taylor Swift released her recent album.
"The first one really only took me an hour or two/The next one is really 'bout to bring out the coward in you," Drake raps. "But now we gotta wait a fuckin' week 'cause Taylor Swift is your new Top/And if you 'bout to drop, she gotta approve/This girl really 'bout to make you act like you not in a feud/She tailor-made your schedule with Ant, you out of the loop/Hate all you corporate industry puppets, I'm not in the mood."
While Snoop Dogg appeared to laugh it off, 'Pac's family had a different reaction. Days after the song dropped, Shakur's estate sent Drake a cease-and-desist and ordered him to remove the song.
April 30, 2024: Kendrick Lamar releases "Euphoria"
Over two weeks after Drake issued his first response, K. Dot shocked fans again when he unleashed "Euphoria" on his YouTube channel. The song's title is a blatant reference to HBO's "Euphoria," which is executive produced by Drake. His lengthy response begins with a reversed sample of Richard Pryor saying "Everything they say about me is true, I’m a phony…" in The Wiz. K. Dot's tone and bars grow more intense every time the beat switches up. It was first time Lamar accused Drake of getting cosmetic surgery for his abs and expressed his true hatred for him.
"Keep makin' me dance, wavin' my hand, and it won't be no threat" Kendrick raps. "I'm knowin' they call you The Boy, but where is a man? 'Cause I ain't seen him yet"
May 3, 2024: Kendrick Lamar returns with "6:16 in L.A."
A few days after "Euphoria," Kendrick dropped another diss track called "6:16 in L.A" produced by Sounwave and Taylor Swift's producer Jack Antonoff, in which he continued to criticize all the moves Drake made since their beef began. He shamed him for dragging his manager Anthony Saleh into the beef with taunting posts on Instagram. He also repeated The Weeknd's allegation about the mole on Drake's team. The cover art is a photo of a pair of black gloves, which may be a reference to the late O.J. Simpson's murder trial that began on June 16. "6:16 in L.A." is a clear nod to Drake's notorious timestamp tracks as well as 2Pac's birthday, Father's Day, and the premiere date of HBO's "Euphoria" — all of which falls on June 16.
"Are you finally ready to play have-you-ever? Let's see/Have you ever thought that OVO is workin' for me?" K. Dot raps. "Fake bully, I hate bullies, you must be a terrible person/Everyone inside your team is whispering that you deserve it/Can't Toosie Slide up outta this one, it's just gon' resurface."
May 3, 2024: Drake fires back on "Family Matters/Buried Alive Interlude"
Drake quickly followed up with his rebuttal on "Family Matters." The song picks up where "Push Ups" left off with the same beat before it switches up again. Among all the disrepsectful bars, Drizzy claims Kendrick's manager Dave Free is the father of one of his kids. He also fires more stray shots at Metro Boomin and Rick Ross. Instead of leaking the track, Drizzy decided to release an entire cinematic production for the diss track. In it, Drake finds a purple van that resembles the one from the good kid, m.A.A.d city album cover and crushed it at junk yard. He also flashes off Pharrell's massive chains, which appears to be a response to Kendrick's line about inheriting the beef involving Skateboard P.
"You did her dirty all your life, you tryna make peace," Drake raps. "I heard that one of 'em little kids might be Dave Free/Don't make it Dave Free's/'Cause if your GM is your BM secret BD/Then this is all makin' plenty f**kin' sense to me."
May 3, 2024: Kendrick Lamar quickly responds with "Meet The Grahams"
From here on out, Kendrick keeps his foot on Drake's neck and refuses to let go. Immediately after "Family Matters" debuted, K. Dot dropped "Meet The Grahams" and made some more shocking claims. He spent the first two verses trash-talking Drake to his son Adonis, mother Sandra and father Dennis. At the end, Kendrick speaks directly to Drake's alleged hidden daughter and calls him a deadbeat dad who neglects her. The Boy didn't immediately respond on wax, but he did deny the existence of an 11-year-old daughter in an Instagram Story. The cover art for the song is completed photo from the "6:16 in L.A." cover art. In it, you can see the black gloves on top of a button-down shirt with various prescription drugs that has Drizzy's government name on them.
"I'm sorry that your father not active inside your world/He don't commit to much but his music, yeah, that's for sure," Kendrick spits. "He a narcissist, misogynist, livin' inside his songs/Try destroyin' families rather than takin' care of his own."
May 4, 2024: Kendrick Lamar drops "Not Like Us" before Drake could respond
Nearly 24 hours later, Kendrick dropped again. Instead of going in on a long track, K. Dot teamed up with DJ Mustard to cook up a bouncy diss record called "Not Like Us." The cover art for the song has Drake's Toronto mansion on the map with sex offender icons all over the property, which alludes to Kendrick's allegations about Drake's attraction to young girls. He unleashes more insults over the catchy Mustard beat and even wraps up by encouraging people to say "OV-ho." "Not Like Us" became an instant hit among fans overnight. Mustard and other DJ's played the record in the clubs just hours after it dropped and it took off from there. Fans loved the song so much that they even tagged some of the lyrics on Drizzy's OVO store in London.
May 5, 2024: Drake clears the air on "The Heart Part 6"
Drake went off on Kendrick once again on "The Heart Part 6," which is an obvious reference to K. Dot's Grammy award-winning song. Drizzy used an Instagram comment from Dave Free on a photo of Whitney Alford and her kids as the cover art for the song. He continues to push the theory about Dave and Whitney's alleged affair, and also addresses the allegations Kendrick made about him.
Drake attempted to claim Kendrick projected the pedophile allegations on to him following the situation he describes in "Mother I Sober" off his 2022 album Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers. In reality, Kendrick wasn't touched but his mother didn't believe him when he denied his cousin molested him. Nonetheless, Drake made sure to emphasize that he is not into underaged girls. In the end, Drake admits to purposely feeding Kendrick's team false information about him, which is what some fans had believed all along. He also claimed Kendrick dropped "Not Like Us" to cover up their mistakes in past songs.
"The one before the last one, we finessed you into tellin' a story that doesn't even exist," Drake says. "And then, you go and drop the West Coast one to try and cover that up."