In the wake of Drake’s birthday, a date upon which the musician decided to gift fans with a snippet of some of the new music he’s been working on, it’s pertinent to reflect upon what’s made Drake such a recognizable public figure. Indeed, the evolution of Aubrey Graham from Wheelchair Jimmy from Degrassi to one of the most successful entertainers in the modern era is definitely a narrative that provides inspiration and deserves respect. His consistent output of hits, in combination with his charisma and contagious smile make Drake a generally likable character, regardless of one’s musical preferences. However, how much of Drake’s persona is really genuine? Though his skills when it comes to structuring a song are undeniable, when compared to other rappers at the forefront of the modern hip-hop movement, does his lyrical ability really afford him the right to be categorized as one of the best rappers of this generation? Maybe not. Upon taking a closer look at Drake and the dynamics by which he interacts with other rappers, one might come to the realization that, in all honesty, dude is a clown. Here are some of the reasons why.
*Disclaimer: For all the hardcore Drake fans, I promise I’m not hating at all. Drake makes genuinely good music, and even if he didn’t he’s making substantially more money than you or I probably ever will. That being said, he’s mad overrated.
Now, back to our regularly scheduled program…
1. Kid Cudi
Drake’s rise to fame revolutionized Hip-Hop in many ways, with probably the most substantial being his appeal to women despite being a straight male rapper. Much of this appeal came from the fact that he was able to address his emotions in a way that seemed genuine, which contrasted many other mainstream rappers at the time. Others that didn’t hop on the Drake bandwagon criticized him for being too sensitive. Either way, Drake’s perceived status as an emotionally honest entertainer makes his recent jabs at Kid Cudi all the more disappointing. On Monday, Drake released a track titled “2 Birds, 1 Stone,” in which he took shots at Pusha T and Kid Cudi, specifically taking low jabs at the latter’s depression, addiction, and suicidal thoughts, for which he’s recently checked himself into rehab.
"You were the man on the moon / Now you just go through your phases / Life of the angry and famous / Rap like I know I'm the greatest / Then give you the tropical flavors / Still never been on hiatus / You stay xanned and perked up / So when reality set in you don't gotta face it / I'm down 200 in Vegas but winning life on a daily basis / It seems like nobody wants to stay in my good graces / I'm like a real estate agent, putting you all in your places / Look what happens soon as you talk to me crazy / Is you crazy?"
Even more disappointing than the fact that Drake used a petty twitter beef as grounds for taking advantage of a very serious issue is the non-apology he issued when confronted about the lyrics. One would think that events from the past would be enough to indicate to Drake that a person can establish dominance (as is the competitive nature of Hip-Hop) in much more civil and appropriate ways. Need an Example?
2. Kendrick Lamar
Nothing was the same between Drake and King Kendrick Lamar after the latter dropped his feature verse in Big Sean’s 2013 song “Control.” Not only did Kendrick drop one of the hardest hitting verses of the year, outshining Big Sean and Jay Electronica (who actually had relatively decent bars, themselves), but he also established his standing in the Hip-Hop community, declaring that he planned to outshine all of the other prominent rappers, even though he had respect for them. Most of the rappers saw the verse for what it was, which was a friendly challenge and a reminder that Hip-Hop was indeed competitive. Because of that, many of the rappers that Kendrick called out didn’t take the verse too personally, at least outwardly. However, unsurprisingly, among those that did was Drake, once again proving himself to be the “sensitive” rapper.
From the release of “Control” onwards, there has been a series of sneak disses issued by Drake, who at one point claimed that he made Kendrick famous by featuring him on his Take Care album (which may have some validity, being that Kendrick’s small part on an interlude was the best rap verse on the whole album), in response to a series of more overt disses by Kendrick that have gone unanswered, most namely Kendrick’s verses during the BET Cypher and King Kunta, the latter on which he rapped:
“I can dig rappin’ / But a rapper with a ghost writer… What the f*ck happened? / I swore I wouldn’t tell / But most of y’all sharin’ bars like you got the bottom bunk in a two-man cell…”
Though this verse was written before Meek Mill’s allegations of Drake’s use of a ghostwriter, the timing could not have been more ironic, and because of this, many people inferred that this was meant to indicate that Kendrick had knowledge of Drake’s ghost writer as well, which brings us to number three…
3. Quentin Miller
Somehow, people are still trying to find a way to dismiss Drake’s use of Quentin Miller as a ghostwriter. Just go listen to the latter’s version of “10 Bands” and make your own decision. Next?
4. The Joe Budden/Meek Mill Paradox
As evidenced by the expediency in which Drake shut Meek Mill down last summer, along with the fact that Drake came at Kid Cudi and Pusha T rather unexpectedly, it’s evident that Drake isn’t above engaging in rap beefs. However, if that’s the case, what’s with his hesitance in addressing Joe Budden’s diss tracks? And having spent almost three years at odds with Kendrick, how is it that they’ve still yet to go bar for bar? Maybe it can be inferred from this context that Drake is afraid of being outclassed lyrically by the latter two rappers, almost like that bully on the playground that seems all big and bad until an even bigger, badder bully comes around. Of course, this is all just speculation. Still, it’s interesting. Though Drake is the better of the two, a large part of what decided his beef against Meek Mill was his star power. Those same conditions wouldn’t apply when going against a lyrical giant like Kendrick (or even Budden, though his chances are better, at least), and Drake likely knows it.
If nothing else, I’d personally pay to see a Kendrick vs. Drake battle…
