The Explosive Origins of Drake and Kendrick Lamar’s Historical Beef: From Friendly Competition to Accusations and Diss Tracks

The rivalry between Drake and Kendrick Lamar is one of the most intense and perplexing feuds in modern hip-hop. What began as a mutual respect and collaboration between two of the genre’s biggest names eventually spiraled into a complex, messy, and highly publicized battle. It all started in 2013, a year when Kendrick was at the peak of his career, and his verse on Big Sean’s track “Control” sent shockwaves through the hip-hop world. In that verse, Kendrick name-dropped a list of fellow rappers, including Drake, in what many initially took as friendly competition. But things quickly escalated far beyond that.

“I got love for you all but I’m tryna murder you n****s,” Kendrick rapped, creating an immediate sense of tension within the hip-hop community. While Kendrick claimed it was just a competitive statement, the bar seemed like a challenge, especially to the artists named in the verse. Drake, one of the biggest targets, took notice, and fans began to speculate that this was the beginning of something deeper. At the time, both rappers were on the rise, but the seeds of their rivalry were unknowingly planted by Kendrick’s bold declaration.

Prior to “Control”, Drake and Kendrick Lamar had enjoyed a positive relationship. They collaborated on several tracks between 2011 and 2012, and Kendrick even served as the opening act for Drake’s 2012 tour. But the friendly atmosphere between the two quickly shifted. Despite Kendrick’s insistence that his verse was all in the spirit of “friendly competition,” it didn’t take long for Drake to feel the sting of the diss. Though neither rapper openly admitted to taking shots at one another, it became clear that the relationship had soured.

Over the next few years, rumors swirled about the tension between Drake and Kendrick. Both artists denied ever dissing each other in their songs, but the underlying animosity continued to simmer. Fans and hip-hop heads began to scrutinize every lyric, trying to decipher who was throwing shade at whom. The beef remained mostly unspoken, with both artists continuing to climb the ranks of hip-hop without publicly acknowledging the tension.

In 2023, however, things took a turn when Drake and J. Cole released their track “First Person Shooter,” where Cole referred to the three of them as the “big three” of modern hip-hop. This line reignited the speculation about the relationship between Drake, Kendrick, and Cole. While it seemed like a simple statement of camaraderie, it didn’t sit well with Lamar. In March 2024, he released “Like That,” where he boldly declared that hip-hop was “just big me,” essentially staking his claim as the most dominant figure in the genre.

As the months passed, the tension between the three rappers reached new heights. In April 2024, J. Cole dropped “7 Minute Drill,” which contained a clear diss aimed at Lamar. However, Cole soon regretted the track and removed it from streaming services, apologizing to Lamar. Despite the apology, the damage had been done, and the feud began to escalate further. Just weeks later, in late April, Drake took aim at Lamar with his own diss tracks, “Push Ups” and “Taylor Made Freestyle.”

The beef reached a boiling point on April 30, 2024, when Kendrick Lamar fired back with his track “Euphoria,” followed by another diss, “6:16 in LA,” on May 3. The lyrical warfare seemed unrelenting, and Drake didn’t hold back in his response. Later on May 3, he released “Family Matters,” a track that shocked listeners with its intense accusations against Lamar, including claims of domestic abuse and the suggestion that one of Lamar’s children was fathered by producer Dave Free.

But Lamar wasn’t done yet. Just twenty minutes after Drake’s release, he dropped “Meet the Grahams,” a brutal track that accused Drake of sexual predation, including trafficking, and even alleged that Drake fathered a second child. The feud took a dark and personal turn, with both artists seemingly trying to outdo each other with ever-more damning accusations. The next day, Kendrick continued his attacks with “Not Like Us,” where he went as far as accusing Drake of pedophilia, a claim that sent shockwaves through the hip-hop world and beyond.

Drake, not one to back down from a fight, responded quickly. On May 5, he dropped “The Heart Part 6,” a track where he denied Lamar’s accusations and vehemently rejected the allegations. Drake also claimed that his team had given Lamar false information about a second child, further stoking the flames of their feud. The personal nature of these accusations—coupled with the ongoing back-and-forth—marked a new low in their rivalry, one that no longer seemed rooted in music alone.

What had started as a playful competitive spirit in 2013 with Kendrick’s “Control” verse had now spiraled into an all-out, no-holds-barred feud. Both artists, once friends and collaborators, had descended into a war of words that seemed destined to spill over into real-life animosity. The accusations and diss tracks continued to come in waves, each more shocking than the last, and the future of their relationship—if there even was one—remained uncertain. The public’s fascination with the drama only fueled the flames, making this beef one of the most talked-about in hip-hop history.

As the year wore on, fans eagerly awaited each new track, speculating on what would happen next in this never-ending battle. Whether the beef would ever be resolved remained to be seen, but one thing was certain: the Drake and Kendrick Lamar rivalry had reached heights no one could have predicted, and it seemed like neither artist was willing to back down anytime soon. What was once a friendly competition had now become a deeply personal war that would continue to shape the landscape of hip-hop for years to come.