Drake’s feud with Kendrick Lamar causes fallout with industry peers

[KENNEDY FELTON]

WHEN KENDRICK LAMAR DECLARES “THEY NOT LIKE US” IN HIS GRAMMY WINNING DISS TRACK AIMED AT DRAKE… THE DIVIDE APPEARS TO EXTEND FAR BEYOND THE TWO ARTISTS AND THEIR CREWS.

AS THE ONGOING RAP FEUD NEARS ITS ONE YEAR MARK… DRAKE CONTINUES TO SEE RELATIONSHIPS UNRAVEL – PARTICULARLY WITH THOSE WHO HAVE ALIGNED THEMSELVES WITH LAMAR.

JUST LAST APRIL… LEBRON JAMES TWEETED OUT… CONGRATULATING DRAKE ON A SUCCESSFUL TOUR.

THE TWO HAVE SHARED A PUBLIC FRIENDSHIP SPANNING FIFTEEN YEARS.

“TONIGHT I’M DOING A DINNER WITH MY BROTHER. HE’S THE BIGGEST ATHLETE IN THE ENTIRE WORLD… HIS NAME IS LEBRON JAMES.”

THAT ALL CHANGED WHEN JAMES WAS SPOTTED AT LAMAR’S “THE POP OUT” CONCERT IN INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA LAST SUMMER – RIGHT IN THE MIDST OF THE FEUD.

By October, fans noticed Drake unfollowed James on Instagram which many interpreted as a further sign of tension.

And now – seemingly confirming the rift – Drake has changed the lyrics to one of his songs that originally praised LeBron.

*IN HIS 2018 SONG “NONSTOP” .. .DRAKE ORIGINALLY RAPPED “HOW I GO FROM 6 TO 23 LIKE I’M LEBRON?” BUT DURING A STOP DURING HIS “ANITA MAX WIN” TOUR THIS WEEK – DRAKE ALTERED THE LINE TO “HOW I GO FROM 6 TO 23 BUT NOT LEBRON?”

Then just Wednesday, James reposted a video from the NFL promoting Lamar’s upcoming halftime show, adding that he’s going to kill it. But LeBron isn’t the only one who’s seen a strained relationship with Drake.

“I THINK WE NEED TO CHANGE THE LENS. WE NEED A 35 MM” “35 MM PLEASE!”

Another longstanding relationship – Drake and rapper Future. Their first collaboration dates back to 2011, and over the years they’ve produced multiple hit songs together – even winning a Grammy in 2023.

But last March, Future released an album produced by Metro Boomin, another former associate of Drake who also got caught up in the feud.

One song from that album – “Like That” – featured Lamar, whose verse ignited what became the most explosive chapter of this beef.

Speaking of producer Metro Boomin – the two also have had a dynamic relationship marked with successful collaborations. After Lamar’s verse on “Like That” which Metro produced, Drake fired back with his diss track “Push Ups” directly addressing Metro in his lyrics. Then – last May – Metro responded with an instrumental titled “BBL Drizzy” which was interpreted as a diss toward Drake, fueling speculation sparked by rapper Rick Ross that Drake had undergone cosmetic surgery.

“Me and [Drake], we had a personal issue, and for the record, not over no girl or nothing silly like that. It was a personal issue that really hurt me and disappointed me.”

In a recent GQ Men of the Year interview, Metro addressed his falling out with Drake. He says, “Me and [Drake], we had a personal issue, and for the record, not over no girl or nothing silly like that. It was a personal issue that really hurt me and disappointed me.”

And then there’s Rick Ross – another longtime collaborator. Drake and Ross dominated the charts throughout the 2010s, but that history didn’t stop Drake from taking shots in “Push Ups,” where he claimed every charting song Ross has was a track featuring Drake.

Ross didn’t hold back – responding with “Champagne Moments” in which he addressed Drake’s racial identity and alleged cosmetic procedures. Still, Ross hasn’t ruled out the possibility of a reconciliation.

“I don’t know, it depends on how I feel. If I had Luc Belaire already that morning, it may be a good day. If I haven’t, you never f—ing know.”

And while it’s unclear where this one stems from – it seems Drake may be at odds with DJ Khaled as well.

In a now-deleted post, Khaled dropped a 7-minute promo video Tuesday for his upcoming album. Drake has been featured on six of Khaled’s albums, so many expected him to be part of this one as well. The video even included a caption stating Drake had contributed to two songs. But after a misunderstanding, the post was deleted – following a comment from Drake that read “Must be Drake Bell” – the actor.

With many of Drake’s industry relationships now in question, one thing is for certain – his music isn’t slowing down. He recently announced a collaboration album with artist PARTYNEXTDOOR, and during a recent tour stop, he teased a solo project set to drop soon, saying it will be a “one-on-one talk” with fans.