R&B/Hip-Hop
Page: 200
Drake appeared to respond to Kendrick Lamar and a myriad of other rap peers with a diss track of his own that’s tentatively titled “Push Ups.”
Perhaps the rollout wasn’t what the 6 God envisioned, with a leaked unmastered version hitting the internet on Saturday (April 13). Some fans questioned the track’s legitimacy as a contingent on social media speculated it was AI-generated.
Hours later, DJ Akademiks squashed the fan theories and got his hands on the CDQ mixed edition of “Push Ups” to premiere the scathing diss for the world to hear.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
It wasn’t only Kendrick Lamar that Drake appeared to take aim at with his response to K. Dot’s scorching “Like That” verse that set the rap game on fire. Future, Metro Boomin, The Weeknd, Rick Ross and more were supposedly in the 6 God’s crosshairs on the track.
Trending on Billboard
Drake jabbed Lamar about his small stature and the financial splits on his contract when it came to his deal with Top Dawg Entertainment.
“How the f— you big steppin’ with a size seven men’s on/ Your last one bricked, you really not on s— / They make excuses for you ’cause they hate to see me lit / Pull your contract ’cause we gotta see the split / Ain’t no way you doin’ splits b—- your pants might rip,” he raps.
“Big difference between Mike then and Mike now/ What the f— is this, a 20-v-1, n—-/ What’s a prince to a king? He a son, n—-/ Get more love in the city that you from, n—-/ Metro, shut your ho ass up and make some drums, n—-.”
Akademiks played the final CDQ version of Drake diss towards Kendrick Lamar, Metro Boomin, Future, and the whole industry.😳🔥 pic.twitter.com/5D13VW8mcA— Hip Hop Ties (@HipHopTiesMedia) April 13, 2024
Drake then turns his attention to Rick Ross and puts his correction officer past on blast and takes credit for lending him plenty of Hot 100 hits with their collaborations like “Gold Roses,” “Money in the Grave,” “Stay Schemin’” and more.
“I might take your latest girl and cuff her like I’m Ricky/ Can’t believe he jumpin’ in, this n—- turnin’ 50/ Every song that made it on the chart, he got from Drizzy/ Spend that lil’ check you got and stay up out my business,” he spews.
Rick Ross didn’t waste any time in returning fire with his “Champagne Moments” diss coming at the OVO boss. Akademiks premiered the record which finds the MMG mogul saying Drake stole Lil Wayne’s flow and alleged that he got a nose job in the past.
“That’s why you had an operation to make your nose smaller than your father nose,” he raps.
Ross didn’t stop there as he continued to clown Drake by posting side-by-side photos of his face to his Instagram Story while referring to him as “BBL Drizzy.”
Drake responded by sharing a text message conversation with his mom on Sunday (April 14) regarding the alleged nose job while calling Ross a “nosey goof.”
“I can’t believe you would get one without me, cuz you know I always wanted one,” she joked while Drake replied, “I would have got us a 2 for 1 deal if I went ma. It’s coming from Rick Ross the guy I did songs with he’s gone loopy off the Mounjaro he hasn’t eaten in days and it’s turned him angry and racist he’s performing at proms for money it’s bad.”
Kendrick Lamar is yet to react to Drake’s “Push Up,” which hasn’t hit streaming services as of press time. Find more of the social media banter between Drizzy and Rozay below.
One year after his onetime Odd Future collaborator Frank Ocean headlined the Coachella main stage on weekend one (to general bafflement from the public), Tyler, the Creator took a crack at the festival’s Saturday headlining slot with a fierce, visually arresting performance of some of his best-loved tracks. Throughout the rapper’s roughly 80-minute performance, he […]
Future: “Don’t you know? Don’t you know?/This life is amazin’, special occasions, we smoke n—as like packs/We roll n—as like…we cook n—as like crack, givin’ it back/So many ties, right or wrong, down for the guys (Swerve)/We ready to ride, dawg, whenever it’s time (Whenever)/However we gotta play it, we can’t be in the blind (Never in the blind)/It’s gon’ seem complicated to you if you not one of mine (Not one of mine)”Future: “Ain’t goin’ against my mans to f—k on his b—h, I’m gon’ f—k up these bands/Got too many options, they meet my demand, my team, we done spinned/You went against the gang, you read what I’m saying, it’s out of my hands”
These issues with Drake seem to be deeper than rap. I’m not sure if this all stems back to the now infamous “tweeters and deleters” Instagram Story from the Canadian rapper. Future takes the “If Metro doesn’t trust you, I’m going to shoot you” slogan to heart, acknowledging all the moving parts and mutual relationships that are going to be tested.
A couples scenes come to mind.
First, there’s this scene from the first Godfather where Michael is in a garage testing out the gun Clemenza set up for him and Clemenza is explaining to him why this tug of war for power is necessary for getting rid of the bad blood every five to 10 years.
This scene applies to the Big 3 in Drake, Kendrick, and J. Cole, but I’ll also throw Future in the mix who clearly feels he’s the odd man out of this equation. Every few years or so, rap has to go through a power struggle. We’ve seen this movie before throughout the genres history, whether it be Boogie Down Productions versus the Juice Crew or Roc-A-Fella versus the Ruff Ryders, and Nas and Queensbridge.
Then there’s the scene from The Wire where Slim Charles is telling Avon they’ve come too far to stop fighting now. This applies to the lines: “So many ties, right or wrong, down for the guys/We ready to ride, dawg, whenever it’s time” and “You went against the gang, you read what I’m saying, it’s out of my hands.”
Like Slim says, “Once you in it, you in it. If it’s a lie, then we fight on that lie, but we gotta fight.” This clip applies to some of the things said on “Nobody Knows My Struggle” as well.
J. Cole has gone through with removing his Kendrick Lamar diss “7 Minute Drill” from streaming services. The viral Might Delete Later closer was taken down from streamers as of Friday afternoon (April 12).
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
“7 Minute Drill” lasted a full tracking week counting toward Billboard chart statistics before being scrubbed from streaming services. In the midst of his apology to Kendrick Lamar while on stage at his Dreamville Fest, J. Cole voiced his plan to have the track removed from DSPs altogether, and five days later he delivered on his promise.
“7 Minute Drill” arrived on Cole’s Might Delete Later project last week and found the Dreamville boss taking shots at K. Dot and his discography.
Trending on Billboard
“I got a phone call, they say that somebody dissing/ You want some attention, it comes with extensions,” Cole initially teased.
He referred to 2022’s Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers as “tragic” and claimed that the Grammy-winning To Pimp A Butterfly had fans snoozing.
“He still doin’ shows, but fell off like the Simpsons/ Your first s–t was classic, your last shit was tragic/ Your second shit put n—-s to sleep, but they gassed it/ Your third s–t was massive and that was your prime/ I was trailing right behind and I just now hit mine/ Now I’m front of the line with a comfortable lead/ How ironic, soon as I got it, now he want somethin’ with me,” Cole spews.
Two days after Cole issued his “Like That” response targeting Kenny, he apologized to Lamar on stage at Dreamville Fest and claimed it was some of the “lamest s–t” he’s ever done.
“I’m so proud of [Might Delete Later], except for one part. It’s one part of that s–t that makes me feel like, man that’s the lamest s–t I did in my f–king life, right? And I know this is not what a lot of people want to hear,” he began.
“I was conflicted because, one, I know my heart and I know how I feel about my peers, these two n—as that I just been blessed to even stand beside in this game, let alone chase they greatness. So I felt conflicted ’cause I’m like, bruh I don’t even feel no way. But the world wanna see blood. I don’t know if y’all can feel that, but the world wanna see blood.”
Cole continued: “That s–t don’t sit right with my spirit. That s–t disrupts my f—ing peace. So what I want to say right here tonight is in the midst of me doing that and in that s–t, trying to find a little angle and downplay this n—a’s f—ing catalog and his greatness, I want to say right now tonight, how many people think Kendrick Lamar is one of the greatest motherf–kers to ever touch a f—ing microphone? Dreamville, y’all love Kendrick Lamar, correct? As do I.”
The North Carolina rapper even went as far as to say he’ll take K. Dot’s response “on the chin” and would offer no rebuttal.
“I just want to come up here and publicly be like, bruh, that was the lamest, goofiest s–t. I say all that to say it made me feel like 10 years ago when I was moving incorrectly,” Cole said. “And I pray that god will line me back up on my purpose and on my path, I pray that my n—a really didn’t feel no way and if he did, my n—a, I got my chin out. Take your best shot, I’ma take that s–t on the chin boy, do what you do. All good. It’s love.”
Kendrick Lamar dropped an atomic bomb on hip-hop with his scathing verse on Future and Metro Boomin’s “Like That,” which saw him target his “Big Three” running mates Drake and J. Cole on the Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hit.
Billboard has reached out to J. Cole’s reps for confirmation.
Polo G was arrested on Wednesday (April 10) in New York on a pair of weapons charges, a spokesperson for the NYPD confirmed to Billboard on Friday (April 12).
Police relayed that the Chicago rapper — born Taurus Bartlett — was arrested and brought into custody on charges of criminal possession of a firearm as well as criminal possession of a weapon.
“On Wednesday, April 10, 2024 at approximately 1209 hours, police responded to a 911 call for found property at 246 Spring Street,” the NYPD spokesperson said via email. “Upon arrival, it was reported to officers that there is a firearm at the location. An individual was placed into custody at the location without incident.”
Based on the address given by law enforcement, it appears the arrest took place at The Dominick hotel in New York’s SoHo neighborhood earlier this week.
Trending on Billboard
According to TMZ, a loaded Glock 23 was discovered by a Dominick hotel employee who alerted local authorities. Police executed a search warrant of the room and found the weapon before arresting the “Pop Out” rapper. Polo G was allegedly carrying about $23,000 in cash at the time of the arrest.
This is far from Polo’s first run-in with the law. The rapper was arrested in August 2023 after police raided his California home and found “numerous firearms” there. The raid followed Polo G’s brother, Taurean Bartlett (a.k.a. Trench Baby), being identified as a suspect in a California robbery. According to the LAPD, when the alleged victim arrived at Taurean’s house to film a music video, the rapper pulled out a “handgun and demanded that the victim transfer money to an unknown account.”
LAPD Detectives subsequently obtained an arrest warrant for Taurean and discovered that he was living with Polo G. When the firearms were discovered at the residence, police arrested both brothers. In that incident, Polo G was booked for possession of a rifle at Van Nuys Jail.
Polo G has been working toward the release of his anticipated fourth album. His third LP, Hall of Fame, arrived in 2021 and notched him his first Billboard 200 No. 1 with 143,000 equivalent album units earned in the first week.
Billboard has reached out to Polo G’s reps for comment.
Metro Boomin’s dark synths and bouncy 808s have laid the foundation for Atlanta to remain a dominant force in rap’s mainstream throughout the last decade. The super producer reunited with Future on Friday (April 12) to deliver their second joint project of the year with the double-disc We Still Don’t Trust You.
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Billboard looks back at Young Metro’s rise from emerging producer to scorching commercial titan. Metro Boomin fittingly made his Billboard Hot 100 debut thanks to producing Future’s “Honest,” which reached No. 55 in 2013.
The St. Louis native climbed the Hot 100’s apex in 2017 for his production on Migos and Lil Uzi Vert’s slippery “Bad & Boujee” anthem that took the hip-hop world by storm.
He would strike chart gold again when hitting No. 1 with The Weeknd’s “Heartless” in 2019, and most recently with an assist from Kendrick Lamar’s atomic bomb on the rap game as heard on We Don’t Trust You‘s “Like That” in March, which gave Metro his first No. 1 hit as a billed artist.
Metro Boomin has produced 16 top 10 hits on the Hot 100 to date, and that number could rise once tallies come in from We Still Don’t Trust You.
The 30-year-old is no stranger to collaborating with artists, which has helped him post seven top 10s on the Billboard 200, including Double or Nothing with Big Sean, Savage Mode II alongside 21 Savage and his Heroes & Villains album. The latter soared to No. 1 on the Billboard 200, and helmed the top spot for 18 weeks on the Top Rap Albums chart, the third most of any in the chart’s history.
Metro Boomin and Future’s We Don’t Trust You album debuted atop the Billboard 200 with 251,000 total album-equivalent units in the week ending March 28, per Luminate. Seventeen of the album’s songs hit the Hot 100 in their first week of eligibility, and the Atlanta duo occupied half of the chart’s top 10.
The book isn’t anywhere close to being written for Young Metro, who will likely continue his ascension in 2024 with another album promised for later this year.
After the video, catch up on more Billboard Explains videos and learn about Peso Pluma and the Mexican music boom, the role record labels play, origins of hip-hop, how Beyoncé arrived at Renaissance, the evolution of girl groups, BBMAs, NFTs, SXSW, the magic of boy bands, American Music Awards, the Billboard Latin Music Awards, the Hot 100 chart, how R&B/hip-hop became the biggest genre in the U.S., how festivals book their lineups, Billie Eilish’s formula for success, the history of rap battles, nonbinary awareness in music, the Billboard Music Awards, the Free Britney movement, rise of K-pop in the U.S., why Taylor Swift is re-recording her first six albums, the boom of hit all-female collaborations, how Grammy nominees and winners are chosen, why songwriters are selling their publishing catalogs, how the Super Bowl halftime show is booked and more.
The shots are coming from all different directions, with many looking to snipe at Drake’s throne these days. Metro Boomin and Future’s We Still Don’t Trust You arrived on Friday (April 12), and they recruited more guests — A$AP Rocky and The Weeknd, who fans think took aim at Drake on separate tracks.
Rocky popped out for a fiery assist on disc No. 2 standout “Show of Hands.” He appears to jab the 6 God about his For All the Dogs album not hitting, which is a bold move considering the Mob frontman hasn’t released a project since 2018.
Trending on Billboard
The Harlem native brags about being intimate with a certain woman, which sounds like Flacko talking about Drake’s baby mama, Sophie Brussaux, whom A$AP rumored to be romantically involved with prior to her relationship with Drizzy.
“N—-s in they feelings over women, what, you hurt or something/ I smash before you birthed, son, Flacko hit it first, son/ Still don’ trust you, it’s always us, never them/ Heard you dropped your latest s–t/ Funny how it just came and went,” Rocky raps.
“Rocky hit Sophie then proceeded to have kids with Rihanna. Drake absolutely despises him,” one fan tweeted.
Another chimed in: “I thought everyone knew that. he hit Sophie but Drake ended up getting her pregnant. while Rocky got Aubrey’s dream girl pregnant lmao.”
Rocky and Drake have had an icy relationship since the days of working together on “F–kin’ Problems” and touring over a decade ago. However, fans believed that Drizzy had smoke for RiRi and Rocky throughout For All The Dogs last year. (In the “Fear of Heights” intro, for example, Drake repeatedly says the word “Anti,” the title of Rihanna’s 2016 album. Another comes on “Another Late Night,” where Drake seems to have A$AP Rocky in his crosshairs. “I ain’t Pretty Flacko,” he rhymes in a nod to Rocky’s nickname, “B—h this s–t get really Rocky.”)
As for The Weeknd, the Canadian crooner makes appearances on multiple tracks. One of the early fan-favorites “All to Myself” is where speculation lies about Abel possibly digging at Drake while being thankful he never signed to OVO.
“As a former devout OVO XO til we Overdose girl, seeing The Weeknd diss Drake is kinda poking at a very tender string in my body,” a conflicted fan wrote to X.
Another claimed, “Ask your self what has Drake done for his own artist on OVO? He just a signed a female act, and I haven’t heard anything from her. All he got is Party that’s it. Bryson and The Weeknd made the best decisions in their entire life.”
“They could never diss my brothers, baby/ When they got leaks in they operation/ I thank God that I never signed my life away/ And we never do the big talk/ They shooters makin’ TikToks,” The Weeknd sings with the last part being a shot at Baka Not Nice, who has compiled a following on TikTok while serving as OVO’s muscle.
The Weeknd passed up on signing to OVO in the early 2010s to land with Republic Records in 2012, which has been a lucrative partnership where he also launched XO Records.
Listen to both tracks below.
There were a few shocking guest appearances on Future and Metro Boomin’s We Still Don’t Trust You album, but perhaps J. Cole had the most surprising of them all.
Cole appeared on disc No. 1 closer “Red Leather,” which hit streaming services on Friday (April 12), and finds him running the pick and roll with Future for seven minutes of smooth rapping at a high level.
Cole’s appearance on the project comes less than a week after his apology to Kendrick Lamar for dissing him on “7 Minute Drill.” That only came about because of K. Dot taking aim at the Dreamville boss and Drake with his “Like That” verse on Young Metro and Pluto’s We Don’t Trust You first installment.
Trending on Billboard
It’s unclear when the verse was recorded, but it appears to be previous to all of the Kendrick Lamar-induced drama and not an official response to the Compton legend.
“My energy was never on some toughest n—a s–t/ I was just a conscious rapper that would f–k a n—a b—h,” he raps.
Regardless, fans didn’t understand why J. Cole would clear a guest appearance like this after what transpired the last week between himself and Kendrick Lamar, as well as the optics of joining up with Future and Metro, who allowed the shots to be fired at his tourmate, Drake.
“Who is advising J. Cole right now? Seriously,” one person asked on X.
Just two days after dropping Might Delete Later and “7 Minute Drill,” J. Cole walked back his sentiments dissing Lamar’s discography while on stage headlining his Dreamville Fest in North Carolina last Sunday (April 7). He went as far as referring to the track as some of the “lamest s–t” he’s ever done in his career.
“That s–t don’t sit right with my spirit,” he said. “That s–t disrupts my f—ing peace. So what I want to say right here tonight is in the midst of me doing that and in that s–t, trying to find a little angle and downplay this n—a’s f—ing catalog and his greatness, I want to say right now tonight, how many people think Kendrick Lamar is one of the greatest motherf–kers to ever touch a f—ing microphone? Dreamville, y’all love Kendrick Lamar, correct? As do I.”
The North Carolina rapper continued: “I just want to come up here and publicly be like, bruh, that was the lamest, goofiest s–t. I say all that to say it made me feel like 10 years ago when I was moving incorrectly. And I pray that god will line me back up on my purpose and on my path, I pray that my n—a really didn’t feel no way and if he did, my n—a, I got my chin out. Take your best shot, I’ma take that s–t on the chin boy, do what you do. All good. It’s love.”
As for Future and Metro Boomin, they are riding high coming off of We Don’t Trust You, which took the rap game by storm to top the Billboard 200 with 251,000 total album-equivalent units in the week ending March 28, per Luminate.
Listen to “Red Leather” below.
04/12/2024
Young Metro and Pluto go for a two-peat with help from J. Cole, A$AP Rocky and more.
04/12/2024
Future and Metro Boomin are back together on their second collab album, We Still Don’t Trust You, which dropped Friday (April 12) via Freebandz/Epic Records/Boominati Worldwide/Republic Records. We Still Don’t Trust You arrives three weeks after We Don’t Trust You, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and featured the Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 […]