The rivalry between hip hop superstars Kanye West and Drake has been one of the most publicized feuds in music over the past few years. Though they started out friendly, collaborating and supporting each other’s music, tensions rose leading to diss tracks, social media shots, and spectacle. So what caused the beef between the titans of rap?
Background of Kanye and Drake’s Relationship
Kanye West and Drake initially had a mentor-mentee type of relationship. West directed the music video for Drake’s breakout 2009 single “Best I Ever Had.” They collaborated on songs like “Forever” in 2009 and “Pop Style” in 2016. West produced and co-wrote Drake’s 2010 hit “Find Your Love.”
In interviews, Drake would praise Kanye as his biggest influence and inspiration He said he wanted to eventually surpass Kanye’s accomplishments in hip hop However, Drake also occasionally made comments hinting at competitiveness with West, like referencing Kanye and Jay-Z’s Watch the Throne album in his 2011 song “I’m On One.”
How the Beef Started
The beef between Drake and Kanye began indirectly through Drake’s feud with rapper Pusha T. Pusha dissed Drake multiple times over the years, doubting his authenticity and claiming he used ghostwriters.
In 2018, Pusha released the diss track “Infrared” questioning Drake’s writing on his albums. Drake responded directly at Pusha and Kanye on “Duppy Freestyle,” calling out Kanye’s jealousy toward Virgil Abloh’s success with Louis Vuitton.
Pusha T replied a few days later with “The Story of Adidon,” which revealed Drake had a secret son and made harsh attacks about Drake’s family and producer Noah “40” Shebib’s illness.
Many speculated Kanye was the one who told Pusha T the sensitive info about Drake’s son. Drake implied this during an interview on LeBron James’ show The Shop. Kanye denied leaking the details, but the damage was done.
How the Beef Escalated
After the Pusha T feud died down, Drake and Kanye continued to take subtle shots at each other on songs and social media from 2018 to 2020. Speculation also emerged that Kanye gave Pusha T the beat for “Lift Yourself” after promising it to Drake.
Things briefly seemed to smooth over in late 2020 and early 2021. But the beef reignited around the releases of Kanye’s album Donda in July 2021 and Drake’s Certified Lover Boy in September 2021.
Both artists seemed to take shots referencing each other on songs from those albums. Kanye posted Drake’s alleged Toronto address online after Drake dissed him on Trippie Redd’s “Betrayal.” Their associates also sparred online.
Where the Feud Stands Now
In December 2021, Kanye and Drake publicly ended the feud when they reunited on stage at a Larry Hoover benefit concert organized by J Prince. But subtle tensions still seem to linger.
References to the beef have popped up occasionally in songs over the past couple years. But there have been no major public battles recently. It’s unclear whether Kanye and Drake will collaborate in the future or if the rivalry could escalate again.
The beef between the two rap icons has entertained and shocked fans over the past several years. But many are hoping they can eventually move past the conflict and deliver more of the outstanding music they’ve created together in the past. For now, the Kanye-Drake drama appears to have cooled off, but their complex relationship remains complicated.
July 24: Kanye collaborator Consequence says they’re ‘looking for Drake’s drop date’
Just a few days later, rumors about potential release date drama became a reality with a single tweet from Kanye’s longtime collaborator Consequence. The veteran rapper and songwriter (who has helped act as Kanye’s mouthpiece during his year of public silence) tweeted: “We looking for @Drake drop date. @THEREALSWIZZZ Line It Up!!! #DropYaLo.” This was just one day after Kanye had missed his July 23 release date and two days after the first listening session in Atlanta, signaling he and Drake might be jockeying for position as Donda and Certified Lover Boy each neared completion.
During an episode of Sound 42’s Fri Yiy Friday just a week later, Drake revealed that his album was finished. Then he added, “Certified Lover Boy on the way, and that’s for anyone in the way,” which many people interpreted as a message for Kanye.
August 21: Drake sends shots at Kanye on Trippie Redd’s “Betrayal”
This is where everything really started to escalate. Drake contributed a verse to Trippie Redd’s new song “Betrayal,” and he used the opportunity to send shots at Kanye, rapping, “All these fools I’m beefin’ that I barely know/ Forty-five, forty-four (Burned out), let it go/ Ye ain’t changin’ shit for me, it’s set in stone.” So, it seems that Drake is implying the release dates are set in stone already. And in addition to Kanye, who is called out by name, these shots may have also been directed at Pusha-T and Consequence (Kanye, Push, and Consequence are each 44 years old).
One big question came to many people’s minds as soon as this was released: When did Drake record his verse? Back on August 11, Trippie revealed that Drake would be on his album, so it was clearly in the works for a while. But there’s a chance Drake was still making changes to his verse until the very last second. When Trip at Knight first hit streaming services at midnight on August 20, the Drake collaboration was mysteriously missing. And it didn’t show up until 24 hours later, which has led to speculation that Drake went back in last-minute and added the line about Kanye. In the streaming era, everything moves fast, and this might all be happening in real time.
A Timeline Of Drake & Kanye West’s Beef | Genius News
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What happened between Drake and Kanye?
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GQhttps://www.gq.comInside the Latest Chapter of the Kanye West-Drake Beef – GQApr 7, 2023 — Its recent iteration dates back to fight in 2018, when Drake was briefly invited to Kanye’s Wyoming sessions for the album that would become Ye, but …
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The Harvard Crimsonhttps://www.thecrimson.comWhat the Hell Happened: Kanye Leaks Drake’s Address, …Sep 14, 2021 — What the Hell Happened: Kanye Leaks Drake’s Address, Drake Leaks Diss Track * Anyone not living under a rock has most likely seen Drake beefing wit…
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