It’s been over a year since the inception of the much-publicized back-and-forth between Drake and Kendrick Lamar. The hip-hop beef gave us Lamar’s Grammy-winning anthem, “Not Like Us,” and led to a legal fire with Drake suing his own label, Universal Music Group (UMG), over allegations of “devaluing his brand” amidst tensions.
Several key figures in hip-hop shared their opinions, while others were directly involved as featured guests on Lamar or others’ multiple diss tracks. A$AP Rocky appeared on Future and Metro Boomin’s single “Show of Hands,” which was thought to be directed at Drake with lyrics referencing his girlfriend — and Drake’s rumored ex — Rihanna.
“Still don’ trust you, it’s always us, never them,” Rocky raps on “Show of Hands.” “Heard you dropped your latest sh*t / Funny how it just came and went (Ha-ha-ha).”
On Tuesday, Rocky shared in an interview with Elle that he thought the diss tracks were “healthy for hip-hop.”
“The battle was between Kendrick and Drake, not Drake and everybody else who might have said something at that time, and that’s mainly why I fell back,” Rocky told Elle. “I just hate the way it’s turning out with [Drake] suing and all that. What part of the game is that? What type of shit is that? That’s none of my business, I guess.”
Lucian Grainge, chairman and CEO of UMG, the world’s largest music company, called Drake’s claims of defamation and that Grainge was involved in the planning and release of that song “farcical,” “nonsensical,” “groundless and indeed ridiculous” in a declaration letter filed in August. Grainge noted that the company had spent “hundreds of millions” in supporting the Canadian rapper’s music career.
Prior to Grainge’s response, Drake had filed a motion to turn over the label’s contract with Lamar, along with details regarding alleged claims of domestic violence and committed by Lamar, who released “Not Like Us” and other songs referencing the battle via UMG’s Interscope division.