Drake and Kendrick Lamar had a private conversation before their fiery back-and-forth even began, Joe Budden claimed on his eponymous podcast on Wednesday (Sept. 11).
“I heard that Drake and Kendrick had a talk before any diss record was released,” the culture critic said during the episode. “[Kendrick was like], ‘Hey, how do you want this to go? What [are] we doing? Are we rapping? OK, then let’s keep it [there],’ and he didn’t keep it [there].”
“It’s only tea because to say it to him on the phone… I know what that’s like. When you’re finna tear [into] a n**ga. [You’re like], ‘Let me call him and make sure first. Aye, man, we’re doing this for real? You deada**?’” Budden continued before adding, “I like it because everybody really hates each other.”
The Grammy Award-winning artists have traded shots over the years, but 2023’s “First Person Shooter” was seemingly the tipping point. On the standout cut from Drake’s For All The Dogs, J. Cole spat, “Love when they argue the hardest MC / Is it K. Dot? Is it Aubrey? Or me? / We the big three like we started a league, but right now, I feel like Muhammad Ali.”
While not an obvious jab, Lamar unleashed lyrical warfare on the pair during his featured verse on Future and Metro Boomin’s chart-topping “Like That.” The Compton native declared, “Motherf**k the big three, n**ga, it's just big me” before referencing the aforementioned album by Drake.
The OVO label head fired back with “Push Ups” and “Taylor Made Freestyle,” while Lamar responded with “euphoria.” Over the next few weeks, they both kept the rivalry going with releases like “Family Matters,” “6:16 in LA,” “meet the grahams,” "Not Like Us" and “THE HEART PART 6.”
Since the high-profile feud began, Budden has delivered hot takes left and right. In May, he disputed Lamar’s “euphoria” claim that Drake doesn’t have a classic album. The rapper-turned-podcaster noted, “That’s a lie, Kendrick.”