Kendrick Lamar just turned up the heat on his beef with Drake.
The California rapper released his new diss track, “Euphoria,” early Tuesday, several days after Drake dropped “Push Ups” and the now-removed “Taylor Made Freestyle.”
In his intricately layered track, the Pulitzer Prize-winning rapper from Compton accused the Canadian rapper of filing a cease-and-desist for “Like That” by Future, featuring Lamar, and produced by Metro Boomin.
Throughout the song, K-Dot also accused Drake of being a bad rapper and a bad father, and he questioned Drake’s Blackness and sexuality. He also claimed that Drake has ghostwriters and surgically acquired abs.
Lamar also admitted to being “the biggest hater,” presumably of Drake.
“I hate the way that you walk, the way that you talk / I hate the way that you dress / I hate the way you sneak diss, if I catch flight, it’s gon’ be direct,” Lamar said of Drake. “We hate the bitches you fuck, ‘cause they confuse themselves with real women / And notice, I said ‘We,’ it’s not just me, I’m what the culture feelin’.”
At one point, Lamar even rapped with a Canadian accent, mocking the artist from Toronto. Beyond that, Lamar hinted that he has more to add to their evolving rap beef when the moment comes.
Kung Fu Kenny’s distaste toward Drake is nothing new. Fans have recently speculated online that Lamar tweeted in response to a feud brewing between Drake and Pusha T in 2012.
The two have rapped lyrics that have appeared to be aimed at each other for years, but the “Like That” drop on March 29 seemed to invigorate the beef.
In it, Lamar rejected the idea of being part of the “big three of hip-hop,” which many rap fans say is Lamar, Drake and J. Cole.
(On a song called “First Person Shooter,” in a 2023 collaboration with Drake called “For All the Dogs,” Cole embraced the “big three” idea.)
On “Like That,” Lamar shot down the concept, rapping: “Motherfuck the big three, n***a, it’s just big me.”
“Your best work is a light pack / N***a, Prince outlived Mike Jack / N***a, bum, ‘fore all your dogs get buried / That’s a K with all these nines, he gon’ see ‘Pet Sematary,’” he continued.
First, J. Cole responded with a song called “7 Minute Drill” on his album “Might Delete Later.” Cole then apologized about the track to a live audience and removed it from music streaming platforms.
Drake then responded with “Push Ups,” which had been leaked, then altered, and released officially on April 19. In the track, Drake called Lamar short, poked fun at some of Lamar’s features and bragged about his own money and streams.
In “Taylor Made Freestyle,” released around the same time on Instagram, Drake used what appeared to be artificial intelligence to emulate the voices of West Coast rap legends Tupac and Snoop Dogg. The song seemed to be an attempt to taunt Lamar with West Coast idols and pressure him into responding.
It was removed after Tupac’s estate threatened legal action against Drake.
Aside from Tupac and Snoop, the beef has drawn in several other artists, both willingly (such as Ye) and seemingly unwillingly (including Gunna, YNW Melly and Sexyy Red).