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Almost a year later, there are still plenty of debates about the Kendrick Lamar and Drake battle that shook up the rap landscape in 2024.
Adin Ross joined the Full Send Podcast earlier this week, and when the Drake-Kendrick Lamar feud was brought up, the popular streamer sided with the 6 God, as he believes the OVO boss won the battle.
Ross, who had Drake on his stream earlier this year, slammed Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show and gave Drizzy the win in their feud.
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“In my opinion, I think Drake won the rap battle because, obviously Kendrick made the hit song ‘Not Like Us,’ but it’s all lies. He said [Drake] had a daughter, which was debunked,” Ross said. “It wasn’t even real, but people don’t bring that up.”
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Ross continued to argue that “Drake put Kendrick” on in his career. “In 2011, I was 11 years old. It was called Would You Like a Tour? I believe,” he said. “It was when [Drake] first dropped Take Care, he took Kendrick, J. Cole, A$AP Rocky, The Weeknd — he took all these guys on tour. Gave them all a feature. French Montana, Meek Mill, all of them. He helped put them on and you’re doing him like this.”
The streamer thinks with Drake on top of the rap game for so long, other artists were eager to knock him off the throne.
“It’s all built up,” he added. “He’s been No. 1 for so long they just tried to knock him out. You can’t knock him out, though. He’s in Australia selling out crazy shows. … This guy just dropped an album, it’s amazing. No disrespect to Kendrick, he has classics, he has hits, [and] he is a legend, technically. But his last album before GNX, Mr. Morale, horrible. Drake revived Kendrick’s career.”
Many considered Lamar’s “Not Like Us” the kill shot in the battle against Drake, which debuted atop the Billboard Hot 100 in May. Kendrick picked up another five Grammys and performed at the Super Bowl halftime show earlier this month. He’ll head out on the Grand National Tour with SZA starting in April.
As for Drake, he’s currently in Australia on the Anita Max Win Tour. He unleashed his $ome $exy $ongs 4 U joint project with PartyNextDoor on Valentine’s Day.
Watch the full interview below. Talk about Drake and Kendrick begins around the 10-minute mark.
Jessica Simpson is stepping back into the music world. The superstar announced on Friday (Feb. 21) that she’s making her highly anticipated musical return with a brand new EP, Nashville Canyon, which is set for release on March 21. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Simpson celebrated […]
Phil Collins has shared an update on his health — which has for years made playing drums difficult — and unfortunately, the 73-year-old Genesis icon still isn’t in fighting shape. In a snippet from a recent interview with Mojo, Collins disclosed that he’s thought about getting back behind the drum set, but hasn’t been able […]
This week in dance music: Massive Attack will headline London’s LIDO festival in June with an entirely battery-powered performance, an ongoing legal battle between Sony Music and Ultra Music Publishing escalated with a new lawsuit, Carl Cox exited the Movement 2025 lineup and was replaced by Jeff Mills and Odesza made a 23-minute remix of the Severance score.
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And to all that we add these, the best new dance tracks of the week.
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Mochakk feat. The RAH Band, “From the Stars”
Brazil’s jet-setting party starter makes his Ninja Tune debut with his From the Stars EP, a two-song project led by its title track. A collaboration with England’s The RAH Band, the song is a take on the group’s 1983 bop “Messages From the Stars,” with Mochakk turning up the BPM and the far-out factor on the slinky, sexy but still muscular club update, which balances nicely with its cool after-hours B-side, “Maria.” The mustachioed producer born Pedro Maia calls releasing the EP on Ninja Tune “completely bananas… one of those stamp-of-approval moments” that he’ll celebrate by playing a flurry of shows in his native country as Brazil celebrates carnival later this month. Closer to home, he plays EDC Las Vegas in May.
Röyksopp feat. Robyn, “Do It Again [True Electric]”
11 years after the release of the original, Röyksopp drop an edit of their Robyn collab “Do It Again.” While the original leaned hard into urgency and flirted with heaviness, the new take adds maximum peak hours heft, dialing up the BPM, isolating the vocals in just the right moments and eventually exploding into all-out, all-encompassing dancefloor delirium. The edit is the second track from the Norwegian legends’ tenth studio album, True Electric, coming April 11 on their own Dog Triumph label.
Bianca Oblivion feat. Sam Binga, “Hypnø”
Los Angeles-based producer Bianca Oblivion makes her long-form debut with a heater of an EP, Net Werk. The four-track project spans bass, grime, Jersey club and more, with “Hypnø” (a collab with British artist Sam Binga) fusing squelchy strings, a hectic beat and waves of low end into a delicious kind of chaos. Oblivion says she “never wanted to rush into an EP or album until I fully understood myself as a producer and felt that my music could stand alongside the tracks I play in my sets.” The title reflects the global network of friends and collaborators I’ve connected with over the years, all of whom, alongside the many music influences from my childhood, have helped shape this release.” Net Werk is out on the U.K. imprint LuckyMe.
Tripolism & Nandu, “Sunrise”
Danish trio Tripolism and producer Nandu link for the hypnotic “Sunrise,” a track that says right there in the name what part of the set it should be played at. It’s recently been rinsed by acts including the ever chic Keinemusik and has gotten support from other tastemakers, with key ears apparently in thrall with the track’s balance of sunlight-like falsetto and a chant that implores what those of us still dancing at dawn might already feel: “You’re never going home, you’ve got to keep going.” The heater is out on Ultra Records.
Hiver, “Dreamachine“
Be transported to the ’90s afterhours of your mind with this electronica-era influenced dreamscape of a track from Milanese duo Hiver. Out on CircoLoco Records, the track pairs pristine production and clean, soaring strings with a feeling of undertow embodied by the beat and the emotive vocals. Hiver says the song is “a testament to our growth as producers. We’ve invested countless hours in honing our studio skills, experimenting with sound design, and perfecting the production process to craft something that feels authentic and unique. The track reflects our love for the electro sound while pushing boundaries to create something unique.” Also: Do not sleep on the uptempo edit by Romanian master Gerd Janson.
One of Sean “Diddy” Combs’ attorneys has filed a motion to step down from representing the incarcerated hip-hop mogul. Per court documents filed in the Southern District of New York on Friday (Feb. 21), Anthony Ricco said that while he had “provided Sean Combs with the high level of legal representation expected by the court, […]
With February coming to an end, some of today’s top stars are welcoming some warmer weather with hot new music drops. It was a major week for pop, with Tate McRae dropping her highly anticipated third studio album, So Close to What. The project features previously released viral singles “It’s ok I’m ok,” “Sports Car” and […]
Cardi B and DJ Khaled are part of the Smurf family. While they won’t be starring in the blockbuster, the “Wish Wish” collaborators joined forces on Friday (Feb. 21) to contribute “Higher Love” to the Smurfs Movie Soundtrack. “Higher Love” also features vocals from Desi Trill’s Natania and Subhi. The track samples Belinda Carlisle’s iconic […]
When it comes to his sophomore album, pop phenomenon Lil Nas X has been taking his sweet time. But fans finally got a glimpse at what’s coming next for the rapper on Thursday (Feb. 20). Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news In a post to his X […]
Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco are teaming up for their new musical era, and the engaged couple dropped their newest song, a collaboration with Gracie Abrams titled “Call Me When You Break Up,” on Thursday (Feb. 20).
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Gomez, Blanco and Abrams joined Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1 this week to discuss the team-up, where the “That’s So True” singer opened up about how natural the song’s creation was. “For as long as I’ve cared about music, both of their work has been in my life,” Abrams said of Gomez and Blanco. “So anything that they want from me is a yes forever. And I just felt really grateful for the opportunity. And also just the song was immediately so stuck in my head as soon as I heard it for the first time. And of course, the opportunity to write my verse on it just happened so quickly, which I think is such a testament to how addicting the song is I think.”
“Call Me When You Break Up” is set to be featured on Gomez and Blanco’s upcoming joint album, I Said I Love You First, which is scheduled to arrive on March 21. The newly engaged duo announced the project last week, while also dropping its lead single, “Scared of Loving You.”
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Gomez discussed working with her fiancé in the interview with Lowe, sharing, “It just felt like it was a little taste of what we are and how we made this together, and how much we loved it and how much we love each other. And it just felt like it was meant to be.”
Blanco then gushed over Gomez, noting, “She’s had such a journey in life, both personally, medically, so many other things. She makes you just believe it. She’s like, ‘I’m not scared of dying young or anyone,’ but she’s scared of the fact of losing someone that she’s finally created a bond with where she feels comfortable enough. And somehow by God’s grace, I happen to be that person. I have no idea why, but I am.”
Watch the “Call Me When You Break Up” music video here.
Voletta Wallace, mother to rap icon The Notorious B.I.G., is dead at 78. Billboard confirmed Wallace’s death with Monroe County Coroner’s Office in Pennsylvania on Friday (Feb. 21).
“Voletta has died, on hospice care, at her residence in Stroudsburg, Penn.,” Monroe County Coroner Thomas Yanac tells Billboard. “Voletta died of natural causes.”
TMZ was the first to report that Wallace had passed away.
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A Jamaican immigrant, Wallace gave birth to The Notorious B.I.G. (born Christopher Wallace) on May 21, 1972, in Brooklyn, where she worked as a preschool teacher and raised Biggie as a single mother.
He went on to reach superstar status in a short time as a rapper while signed to Diddy’s Bad Boy Records, where he released a pair of albums, Ready to Die and Life After Death, the latter of which debuted atop the Billboard 200 and arrived just weeks after he was gunned down in Los Angeles on March 9, 1997, at just 24 years old.
Much of the the Brooklyn rap icon’s catalog is etched in rap lore as one of the pillars of East Coast hip-hop during the ’90s “golden era,” including hits such as “Juicy,” “Hypnotize,” “Ten Crack Commandments,” “Going Back to Cali,” “Mo Money Mo Problems” and many more.
Wallace launched the Christopher Wallace Memorial Foundation in her son’s memory and did whatever she could to uphold his legacy and protect his estate while building on the foundation he laid prior to his passing in 1997. She also served as a producer on the Notorious biopic, which brought her son’s life story to the silver screen in 2009. She was portrayed by Angela Bassett in the film.
The Notorious B.I.G. was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2020, and Voletta was present to accept the honor in her son’s place. “Today, I’m feeling great,” she told Billboard at the time. “As a mother, I’m extremely proud of his accomplishments. You know, I still see such a young man at a young age, and sadly, he’s not here to witness all this. But it’s an astute honor, and as a mother, I’m just elated for that.”
In recent months, Wallace’s Instagram account made posts celebrating her son’s rap achievements, which included 992 million Spotify streams in 2024 and eclipsing 2.5 billion all-time streams on Apple Music.
Voletta Wallace is survived by her grandchildren C.J. Wallace and T’yanna Wallace, who are Biggies kids.