Drake vs Kendrick Lamar (2013-2024)

Summary

The Drake vs Kendrick Lamar feud is the most consequential rap beef of the streaming era and, by chart impact and cultural penetration, one of the largest in any era. It originated in Kendrick's 'Control' verse in August 2013, when he named Drake among the rappers he was 'trying to murder' lyrically — a competitive challenge Drake declined to immediately answer. The two artists exchanged subliminals across the next decade until Kendrick's guest verse on Future and Metro Boomin's 'Like That' (March 22, 2024) directly attacked Drake and J. Cole, breaking the détente. Over fourteen days in late April and early May 2024, the artists released ten diss tracks in escalating sequence. Per the New York Times, BBC, Rolling Stone and Pitchfork timelines: Drake's 'Push Ups' and 'Taylor Made Freestyle' (April 19) → Kendrick's 'Euphoria' (April 30) → Kendrick's '6:16 in LA' (May 3) → Drake's 'Family Matters' (May 3) → Kendrick's 'Meet the Grahams' (May 3, hours later) → Kendrick's 'Not Like Us' (May 4) → Drake's 'The Heart Part 6' (May 5). 'Not Like Us' debuted at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, became the most-streamed hip-hop song of 2024, and won five Grammys at the February 2025 ceremony including Record of the Year and Song of the Year — the first diss track to win either category. Kendrick performed it at the Super Bowl LIX halftime show on February 9, 2025, drawing 133.5 million viewers, the most-watched halftime in NFL history. Per Rolling Stone, Complex and Pitchfork retrospectives, the press consensus is that Kendrick won decisively on every measurable axis — chart, streams, awards, cultural penetration.