Voxels

We talk about Drake versus Kendrick…and that’s really it we ran out of time for anything else.

Content Warning: Sexual Assault Mentions, talk of predatory behavior.

Show Notes:

Drake vs. Kendrick:

Microsoft Fuckups:

  • (00:01) - Drake versus Kendrick
  • (01:03:40) - Microsoft Shutting Down Studios

Creators & Guests

Host
Cristian Colocho
I like computers, reading science fiction, manga, bad anime, rap music, and making hot takes.
Host
Sadiq Saif

What is Voxels?

A podcast on Art and Culture by Sadiq Saif and Cristian Colocho

Sadiq:

Hi. I'm Sadiq

Cristian:

And, you know, I I kept watching that one slave anime from the last time to see if it would redeem itself.

Sadiq:

Goddamn it.

Cristian:

It didn't. It really didn't. It got it got way worse. So so, basically, watch the last episode. Whenever we did the anime pickup, we're talking about that one where, like, he buys a slave, he frees the slave.

Cristian:

Right? Just the dater. No. He buys a slave and he wants a dater. Right?

Sadiq:

Mhmm. Mhmm.

Cristian:

Mhmm. So here's how down, bad, and how terrible it gets. Alright? I'm spoiling the shit. Skip ahead to the next chapter.

Cristian:

There's chapter markers, bell spoiler bell here. So he, a few episodes later, gets enough power to find the key to her chains and freeze her. Yeah. And she comes back to him and says, no, I wanna be with you and tells him to put the shackles back on her.

Sadiq:

I, that's, I I I am there's a lot to unpack there, and we're we do not I'm

Cristian:

also I'm also a Christian. But yeah. But, anyways, this is Voxel, the podcast about culture and games. And speaking of people with problematic views on slavery, let's talk about Drake.

Sadiq:

Jesus Christel. Alright. Let's let's I I think we need to, like, set the stage here a little bit. I think I don't know. Not I don't know how many of our listeners I know some of our listeners are definitely following this, but just to, like, we should go start the origin of this.

Sadiq:

The origin of this is I mean, the origin of this is deeper than we probably know, but, like, the the track that sort of started Back

Cristian:

in 2013, Kendrick it's 2014? When did Control drop? So Kendrick dropped the verse called Control, and Drake yeah. 2013.

Sadiq:

Yeah.

Cristian:

And Drake did not like that. So it's basically been since Control dropped that we've known publicly that Drake and Kendrick do not fuck with each other.

Sadiq:

So all of this has been simmering for a while. Right? Like, it's just sort of just, like, background in the background. Kendrick has not, like I think I think the hard part 6 the hard part 4 or 3, what was it it was called?

Cristian:

Yep. Hard part 4, the one before damn, that's the one I called out Drake. The one the line is, if you if you tell lies about me, I'll speak some truths on you.

Sadiq:

Yes. That and that's that line specifically is very relevant now in this particular era of this beef. Right? So we the first instigating incident is it was thing is is from first person shooter, the track with Drake and J. Cole on it.

Sadiq:

And, the line where where where J. Cole goes that, is it KDOT? Is it Aubrey or me? We the big three. Like, we started a big league, started started late.

Sadiq:

And that is the line that sort of kicks us off, which I I did not expect anything to come out of that line. I thought just just like that like, first was a shooter as a song. I didn't expect anything to, like, happen because of it. Like, it just felt like, you know, whatever. Like, it's just another Drake song.

Sadiq:

Drake just doing his I don't know, like, try to be Michael Jackson, like, whatever the fuck he's doing in that music video. Like, it's whatever. And and Kendrick responds with with like that, which which I'm I I think we talked about the I don't know if we talked about this on the podcast or we talked about it elsewhere, that we I didn't think we didn't think that Kendrick's response on like that was serious. Like, we didn't think he was being, like, actually, like, he was actually pissed off. Like, it just felt like kind of like a, you know, just like kind of like a fun brag track.

Sadiq:

Like, it like, at first, that didn't really mean much, but, that coming back to that, like, where he's just like, you know, I'm I'm, like, I'm I'm the big, you know, like, there's only just me. Just you 2 are not, like, relevant to this conversation, And that, you know, the prince outlet your favorite line. Right? Prince outlived Michael Jackson. Right?

Sadiq:

At which because because Drake's made the reference to him being Michael Jackson in in first person shooter. That's I didn't think this this this whole that whole verse was serious. Like, I I I just really did. So what what do you what do you think think about this sort of, like, J. Cole was almost involved in this, and he he backed out.

Sadiq:

Like, do you

Cristian:

Well, we we gotta we gotta we gotta take a step. But we gotta still focus on first on on first person shooter and and like that. So I think the the bigger issue is is that, in in the game of rap, because rap is a competitive sport, hip hop is a competitive sport as everyone knows, basically, that you have a problem where not many people like Drake. Because it's we I think we have to take a moment to talk about the culture of it. Because there's, like, the beef stuff, but, so Drake Drake Drake is an artist from Canada who came into the US and then basically is, like, the number one streaming artist, I think, on all streaming platforms globally.

Cristian:

And maybe Taylor Swift, maybe they came into Taylor Swift or, like, tied neck for neck.

Sadiq:

Yeah. I mean, Drake is is is massive, like and it's it's it's not a, like, Drake and Taylor Swift are, like, I would say equivalents in that. And then it's it's kind of interesting to see as someone who's been sort of here for Drake's rise, you know, when, you know, that when it went, like, I remember when I was in, like, high school, like, when the track, like, Hold on, We're Going Home, you know, with Magic Jordan We gave, like, the track, like, everywhere. Like, you know, everybody was playing that. Like, our we started from the bottom now now here.

Cristian:

Well, we have a different context though because you're you are actually from Toronto, that area. You're from you're from the GTA, the grand theft auto as they call it.

Sadiq:

Yeah. I'm from Toronto. A grand theft auto. Yes. But the thing is Drake's I think Drake's popularity sort of peaked with views, like the album views.

Sadiq:

Right? And I think after views, I slowly but surely, like, I think Drake sort of I think Drake, like, still put out music that people listened to in the in the sort of abstract concept. Like, it's there's this obviously, he's making a lot of money with a lot of streams and, you know, concerts and all that. But, like, like as a cultural entity, he sort of started falling down, like, sort of in people's estimations of who he was as a person and, like, or not just that, I think accusations of being like a culture vulture, like, like a cultural people are sort of like, sort of just borrows, like, trends from different cultures, different different, countries, different cultures. Like, what that's part of where he tried to be British, you know, where he tried to, like, do, like, a UK rap style, you know, like, or he tried to do, like, a Caribbean thing, like, you know, he's he's just trying to, like

Cristian:

Well, I think there's a there's a different aspect of it too that it doesn't I mean, it doesn't, I think, matter much for you in in Canada. But I think from a from the US perspective, for a lot of, like, American artists, you basically have Drake being what the voice of hip hop is. Right? And that gets exported around the world. And I feel like a lot of, like, US based artists have a problem with that since that's not necessarily what, what they want the culture to be.

Cristian:

Right? Like, I think that's why you have Kendrick who quite obviously has studied hip hop. Right? You know, Doctor Dre cosigned, Supesaw on all of his records, the ending of fucking Tiffin' a Butterfly being an interview with Tupac. Right?

Cristian:

Like all of that just being in his core DNA of his character and the music he puts out, that would put you in natural odds of what Drake is doing, which is basically, like, I'm I'm gonna go for these trends and do whatever I want and, you know, it's like, if I had to talk about Hololive for the nerds here. Right? Drake's Cali Amori. Hip hop didn't work for us, so now she's making anime music.

Sadiq:

I I I I think I think what what hap what what what what feels like what an app like, analogy here. Drake is putting on a costume. Right? Like, when he raps. Right?

Sadiq:

And and Kendrick sort of alludes to this in in his in his in the tracks that he released recently with the, for the disc. Like, Drake is not like, that is not his real self. Like, Drake is not a person who, like, lived that life as it were. Right? He's not he's not like that.

Sadiq:

Right? He's not like us, you know, specifically. Like, he's not he didn't grow up like that. And it it sort of always felt like Drake was putting on, like, like, he was an entertainer, right, first. Like, he was not speaking from a place of genuine okay.

Sadiq:

Let let me rephrase that. So it's like all, like rap is like an entertainment genre, but like he's not speaking on it from a place of authentic lived experience. Right? Like, he's not he's not it felt fake. Like, it felt extremely fake.

Sadiq:

So and increasingly as time went on, it it got a more and more obvious how just how fake it was, how sort of, you know, how much Drake doesn't respect the culture, etcetera. Like it it it sort of and obviously, I think the, this shouldn't be, like, discounted. I think the quality of his music decreased. I think people are willing to forgive a lot of fake shit in music, if the music is good, but the music wasn't good. After views, I think the musical quality musical output of Drake just sort of careened off like a pet, like, into a pet.

Sadiq:

It's just, like, not I don't I don't think I've I don't think I've there's a track. Any real tracks after, if you're reading this, it's too light or views where I'm just like, this is a good track. It's just Drake hasn't made a good song the long ass time. And that sort of didn't help. Right?

Sadiq:

Because once your music is bad, and you're also you're also like culturally appropriating from these different hip hop sub genres, around the world, nobody's gonna have any respect for you, right? Like, if that doesn't it doesn't doesn't doesn't matter that you're popular, it just it means that, you know, your your popularity is built off the backs of, like, you know, there's a lot of artists that, know, this is this is like old, old Drake sort of trope where Drake has these artists in his, I guess, you'd call in his in his crew where he just like uses their beats and and their their melodies and songs and ghostwriters, that he doesn't really give them anything else. Right? Like, he sort of just uses them as a resource, and so treats them poorly. I think, definitely, some artists who could speak to that, probably, who have chosen not to.

Cristian:

And I mean, it's a great it's a broader issue in music industry. I think there's a lot of, and part of it, I don't think is like artist driven. I think some of it is also labeled. Well, most of it's probably label driven. And like the same reason that why did why was Culture 1 a classic, 12 tracks, perfect length.

Cristian:

Right? Culture 1 by Migos is perfect length. Culture 2, 30 tracks. Culture 3, fucking 35 tracks. It's this entire cycle where and Spotify and streaming, I think, is partly to blame also, where you kinda get incentivized to make music for artistic sake with music for to get put in playlists, to get put in recommendations.

Cristian:

Right? So you can have gaming streams and then end up getting, you know, more money from your music that way, because otherwise you don't get paid shit for streaming. And I think that's basically the wave that Drake has ridden. Right? He's ridden being I'm sure there's good tracks, but also he makes the kind of music that any, like, editor at Spotify, you know, or Apple Music can put can put it in the the rap playlist.

Cristian:

Yeah.

Sadiq:

It's a safe pick. Right? Like, you could put a Drake track Yeah. You could put a Drake track on on a on a on a slap playlist or on a on a magazine cover or whatever. Like, you could it's a safe option.

Sadiq:

Like, Drake is is, as you say, like, you know, like, the music that gets played on department store. When you go to a store and the music that's that if they're if they're playing hip hop, it's gonna be Drake because they they know it's gonna be, like, the safest option. Right? Like the the that's that's just gonna be it. So he became like this sort of bland, like, it it sort of created this I mean, homogenized, like, sort of just stripped hip hop of it sort of, of the actual cultural power, and make it into this commodity.

Sadiq:

Right? You know, we can talk about that. That's a different topic, but But

Cristian:

but it's all kind of tied together on why Drake exists as like an as an industrial complex. Right? The industrial complex of Drake is basically because the music labels aren't paying artists to make real art, so artists are gonna make music that games the streams. And he just happens to be really good at it, and that is why Kendrick is a culture vulture, because Kendrick has I mean, Kendrick has made pop shit before, you know, like, tracks off a dam. But I think we can all kind of argue or, you know, we can all, you know, agree on the general consensus that at least with a Kendrick album, like, you know, at least with like, let's come here with it.

Cristian:

For All the Dogs and Mr. Morrell. Right? Mr. Morrell is a problematic album, but what's Kendrick saying on Mr.

Cristian:

Morrell? You know, hey, I fucked up. I need to hold myself accountable. I cheated on my wife. I had problematic views about trans people, even if put the slower stuff aside.

Cristian:

Right? The the point of that song was I had problematic views on trans people. I need to change that about myself. My cousin called me out of my shit for using slurs. And then you got Drake, which is making songs about how you need Amen and it's called Amen?

Sadiq:

Yeah. It just I I had a Kendrick. I although, like, a straight up, like, concepts, the captial level bar for bar, I think Kendrick has all obviously always been the better rapper just just in general, for every every, add, I think this is the old, like, Jay z line is where he said that if rap is what's sold, like, if rap or just just rapping is what's sold, that he would be rapping, like, commented. Right? And I think what he meant was that, Drake is just taking the playbook of, it doesn't have to be it doesn't have to make any sense.

Sadiq:

It doesn't have to be deep. It just has to be catchy and have a and he's he's a pop is his pop artist. This this this is the key that we are just of Drake is Drake is a pop rap artist. Right? That that is the niche, not niche, but that is the But

Cristian:

he thinks he's real hip hop though.

Sadiq:

Yeah. That he does. Yes. He's sort of under illusion that, he is. So let's talk about I think, some of the tracks here.

Sadiq:

I think that we're we're talking about, I think. Yes.

Cristian:

So first person shooter, we went through like that. So now we gotta I think we'll take a detour to J. Cole, though. Just get J. Cole out the way.

Cristian:

So J. Cole released 7 Minute The Drill, a terrible song objectively, where he's dissing Kendrick, and then a few days later he on stage said he had a change of heart and deleted the track off a string, but thankfully the Internet never forgets. So there's an archive track of it in the show notes. I think basically the the most we can say about J. Cole is I kinda wish he was on this in in the beef for one reason one reason.

Cristian:

Kendrick dropped the track saying trans rights. J Cole dropped the transphobic track. Imagine a knot like this calling J Cole transphobe. Listen. Listen.

Cristian:

Humanity will be a better place if there was a club banger calling out transphobes or being pieces of shit. That's all I'm saying.

Sadiq:

But you Yeah. Yeah. I I I think Drake Drake, it's not Drake. J. Cole made the wisest decision of his life, to just get the fuck out of there.

Sadiq:

Like, just straight up. He he realized that this was gonna go

Cristian:

Someone I can't like someone from Kendrick's cap reached reached out to him and was, like, yo, bro. No. No. No. No.

Sadiq:

No. Like, this is not Yeah. Just leave. Just go. Just go.

Cristian:

Bye. You you the same, like, who can rap batter beef rap batter beef? This is, like, someone's about to get some charges beef.

Sadiq:

Yeah. Exactly. It's it's not it's not casual. Like, this is not a casual beef. So, the first big but first, we we we'd like we talked about like that and the sort of Drake response to that, right, with 2 tracks.

Sadiq:

First of all, first track, which is push ups, which, honestly, I I this is just I I I'll be honest with all the audience here. I'll be real with you. None of the, none of the Drake responses to this have been particularly, like, part of the good, and the only interesting one was obviously Family Matters. And mostly because, not because of the song itself really, but because of the video. I thought the video was, like, kinda, like, you know, like like a very that's the only respectable part of this, of this whole beef where Drake actually put in, like, an effort into something, and it was that video.

Sadiq:

So that's not about push ups. Like, is there anything that we need to talk about our push ups that's supported? Like, like, you know, how he talks about, like, you ain't in no big 3, says the guy you wiped out. I'm like, what does this have anything to do with this? Like, why is she here?

Sadiq:

Why is she getting

Cristian:

So the issue this push up sets up a core problem with Drake's attack offense. Right? If we gotta go esports on this shit. So Yeah. Kendrick was always the target and, you know, Rocky and other people are not we don't trust you.

Cristian:

Right? We're throwing shots at Drake. Future was too. So even the, you know, the weekend, right, he had a line where he's like, I'm glad I didn't sign to OVO and then Drake decided to go after all of them and that's where he got the tracker that says, you know, what what is a 20 v one? And that was, like, his mistake.

Cristian:

It's, like, what is oh, no. You took down ASAP Rocky. Okay. Like, what is it? Yeah.

Cristian:

Like, okay. Who's

Sadiq:

ASAP Rocky? Is not involved. Yeah. Like, it's just It's

Cristian:

between you and Kendrick and and his fatal flaws that he kept focusing on everyone. It's like like the what are you gonna be for the weekend about? Like, what is this what is the weekend bars, you weirdo? Like, no. That's not that's not the that's how you put your energy at in a fight like that.

Sadiq:

No. Yeah. I I think, I've heard, Rick Ross talk that.

Cristian:

Fucking Rick Ross was a Yeah. It just it

Sadiq:

just feels unf it just feels unfocused. Right? Like, Drake Drake is spread his sort of lyrical energy here towards people who are not involved in this, like, really at all. And he just gets distracted by, like, I I think the point I think sort of over our key point here is that Drake can't just go at Kendrick because he doesn't he can't. Like, he doesn't know he doesn't have the lyrical ability nor the ammunition to really, like, take Kendrick on head for head.

Sadiq:

Right? And which means that he's, like, just distracting or distracting himself with these, like, bars about the weekend, like ASAP Rocky, like, the Pharrell and, like, you know, all these people, like, that are not involved in this at all. Right? You know, why is why is Pharrell here? Like, Pharrell y'all leave Pharrell out of this.

Sadiq:

Like, he was like like, all these, like, lines, like, you know, like, the whole line about, you know, this line where he's like, then we need a verse for the Swifties. Like, what? What's that even, like, like, what is what is that in reference to?

Cristian:

The problem is that it's it's not developed well. So basically, there's I mean, there are ways you could attack Kendrick. Right? Outside of the short jokes. The short jokes are kinda funny though.

Cristian:

I I love a short joke. There's there's nothing wrong with a short joke. Sorry there's short kings out there. But, like, he could have built a good narrative on how Kendrick's early success with Moon 5, Imagine Dragons, and Taylor Swift is based off the fact that his record label was forcing him to collaborate with white artists. Like, there is a threat and he kinda pokes at it, but he doesn't develop it.

Cristian:

Right? It's like, this is appetizers, and we want the main course.

Sadiq:

Yeah. Yeah. He just he's just sort of jabs. Right? He does these, like, little little jabs.

Sadiq:

He never, like, expand like, he doesn't, like, dig deep into these any of these topics, and it's like like everybody's getting hit by, like, casual shots, like Metro Booming is getting hit by I mean, Metro Booming is technically involved in this in in a way, so we can't really be, like, you know, Metro Booming is not involved. But Metro didn't need any shots, like, you know, it's like, it's all this shit, like, I listened I listened to push ups and I was just like like, you know, is this really the best that Drake can do?

Cristian:

Wait. Wait. Let's put it in Overwatch terms. Right? Like, how

Sadiq:

Oh my god. No. What what? What is it? I don't know.

Cristian:

I don't play enough overwatch. What's the play like? How how does this compare to, like, you know he got ganked? He was trying to gank and he didn't get ganked? Like, how does that work?

Sadiq:

Okay. So so the if if if you're really doing this analogy, I think this is Drake is playing, a game where he is not focusing targets. Right? He I mean, the the one of the core principles of playing overwatch is when you play as a team, you you you focus around a singular objective and a singular target or or, you know, so Adriq has not focused his like, he's not focused on on Kendrick. He's just spreading his his attacks on multiple, like he's not doing enough DPS to to Kendrick here.

Sadiq:

You know what I'm saying? Like he he spread his DPS across multiple targets, which which means that at the end of the day, he's strategically, from a gameplay perspective, he's he's sort of gonna lose because he's not

Cristian:

Pushing the objective. Yeah. Yeah.

Sadiq:

Yeah. He's not pushing the objective, you know. So that's a good I didn't expect to be making an Overwatch analogy, but, there we go.

Cristian:

Anyways, Overwatch has Porsches in it. I don't understand. Taylor made Freestyle, though, was also equally terrible for doing AI 2 Pocket, AI Snoop Dogg.

Sadiq:

I okay. This one, I I think is where I sort of I was just, like, after I saw this and I was just, like, really? Like, is this is this what we're doing? Where we? So super put into put into context, TaylorMade, Freestyle has a verse from an AI, quote unquote AI generated verse from Tupac.

Sadiq:

And, this is like disrespectful on like so many levels, right? Like this is, this is so edge lord behavior, right? Like this is just the kind of shit where you do, like you're a troll, like you're edge lord. Like, we all know that Kendrick is, you know, Tupac is massively important to Kendrick as as, you know, for various reasons as we alluded to earlier, we don't get to, like, the whole verse at the end of a whole and the thing with at the end of the Tupac butterfly, if anyone hasn't listened to that, go listen to that. It's Tupac is a significant figure.

Sadiq:

It's sort of like the canon of West Coast hip hop, to sort of insult Kendrick using, Tupac's, like a beat up Tupac voice is just, like, I from my perspective, that's an automatic l. Like, you forfeited this whole thing just by doing this. Like, it is like, it doesn't even matter to me what Drake does after this point because after after this point, I just look at Taylor Beat Freestyle, and I'm just like, well, how can I take anything this man says seriously ever again? You know, like, it's just it's just that doesn't sit right with me as a person who got introduced to hip hop with Tupac. It's kind of like sitting wrong with me on that front as well.

Sadiq:

Like, it's just disrespectful to the culture. And this is the thing. Like, Kendrick has been talking about how Drake has we have all these examples of Drake being, you know, disrespectful to the culture. And this is this here this right here is like like exhibit a in like, at a prime example of, like, why Drake is like, you know, how Drake is being disrespectful. This is like, it it's just a own goal, honestly.

Sadiq:

Like, this is this

Cristian:

is just And more importantly, beefs are a battle of public opinion, not,

Sadiq:

like Yep. Mhmm.

Cristian:

And you don't Yeah. You you don't win public opinion by shitting on things that people like.

Sadiq:

Yep. Yep. Yeah. Exactly. And it's just like, like like people, I get brilliant people who are not involved, right?

Sadiq:

Tupac is not involved obviously, like nor is Snoop Dogg. Like why is the Snoop Dogg verse, like, AI generated Snoop Dogg and you're like, it's just this shit. Like, just just bad. Like, this is this is not it's not it's it's not good. Then we talk about unless you have anything else to say about TaylorMade freestyle.

Sadiq:

I think we can talk about euphoria.

Cristian:

No. It's garbage track. I mean, also Drake's, Drake Drake ain't right for leaking it out first, an unmixed version, and then once there's response to it, putting out the actual mix version, that's wack.

Sadiq:

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That's, yeah. That track should have never have been made, honestly.

Sadiq:

That was a that was a that's a bad one. Euphoria, on the other hand, is quite possibly honestly, like, straight up just like a really good, like, Kendrick track in general. Like, it's odd.

Cristian:

I think I think it's the best track from this entire beef if we take a production writing, like, cohesive song perspective. I think it's the best track overall.

Sadiq:

Yeah. It's just, like, you know, like, it starts off with that sort of slow Kendrick spoken word style, and then it, like, it it has multiple layers or, like, 3 beat beat switches. Right? And it starts building this, like, narrative. Right?

Sadiq:

It started building this, like, the beat changes also sort of sort of play into that. Like, the beat gets more intense, and this Kendrick's rapping gets more and more intense. Right? So I think there's, like, multiple things in this track we're talking about. Right?

Sadiq:

He's talking about how, like, you know, he he he inherits the beef from from Pharrell, you know, like we refer to Pharrell, and that, you know, he's like, he's Terrence Thornton. I'm Terrence Crawford. Like, the whole thing about, you know, how I mean, the story of Adidon, right? I think is worth bringing up at this instances just as a as I think sort of like the start of the downfall of Drake would have, I think it could start with the story of Adidon because, that I felt like laid the groundwork for other rappers to come in and, like, Kendrick just sort of twisting that knife in a little bit. What do you what do you think about this track?

Sadiq:

Like, I I think it's really good, actually. So

Cristian:

So I think the the thing with this track is from a lyrical perspective, the amount of foreshadowing in retrospect is wild, because Drake Kendrick wasn't even making PDF downloader allegations. Right? Like he wasn't even making I don't even know why. So we're not on TikTok. We're not on YouTube.

Cristian:

I don't know. Actually, I mean, this is going to YouTube. I don't know. I don't know if this is I don't want this channel to get striked. But, this is see algorithms, they they they dictate how you make content.

Cristian:

They got to fucking say PDF file. Gotta be, like, call people Acrobat readers nowadays. Oh, my God. No. The real l of this whole beef has been Adobe.

Cristian:

Fuck Adobe though. But so basically though with this track it's, like, there's so much, like, great writing, great foreshadowing, and you could tell Kendrick's having fun with this shit. Like, it's all the weird vocal inflection. He he does he kinda does not like us, but what is this, fuck for fuck pushing p. I wanna see you push a t.

Sadiq:

Like, here's a different tone. Yeah. Like, the I think I love this. This is this is this is, like, sort of my favorite or my favorite aspects of Kendrick is where he I mean, this is he's he's not the first time he's done this, but, like, he does these voices. He's, he's like a he sort of switches purse he takes on these personality.

Sadiq:

It kind of reminds me of Eminem in that way, you know? Like, he kind of, like, takes on these, like, voices and, like, sort of and, like, really has his inflections. Like, he moves his voice higher and lower, and that sort of inflection on Pusha t is it was just, like, so good. Like, all these little old,

Cristian:

and then you have the bar where he's, like, I love you all to death in 8 bars. I'll explain that phrase. And then 8 bars later, he's, like, if y'all don't do that, I'm YNW Belly. Like, what the fuck is he saying it like that? It's so good.

Cristian:

Euphoria is just so well written and it's so like, it's he's taunting him at the end of it saying he's taking away he took away his n word pass.

Sadiq:

Yeah. He he he sure did. Oh my god. That was I I think the only only part of this track that doesn't really make sense or work is the part where he talks about, what Drake's, record label cut is. Right?

Sadiq:

Like record label contractors, like, because that I think, is not, like, is not really applicable anymore, right, to either Kendrick or Drake. Right? Like

Cristian:

No. No. It's a 3 60 deal. I think Drake's in a 3 60 deal. I think that's what it is.

Cristian:

Do you know what a 3.60 deal is? Or maybe I should explain it for listeners even, if you do. So 3.60 deals are basically where you take a loan from the record label. They you don't make enough to, I think, pay it back. So you're kinda stuck continuously producing albums until it's paid back.

Cristian:

But because of the amount of money they're fronting you, you don't get paid for it. So it's 360 in that you're continuously stuck making hot records for the rest of your life. Kendrick's obviously not in one because he just started his own record company. He's no longer a top dog. But Drake's been at the same level since day 1, so I think Kendrick is kinda saying, hey, I have the freedom to do whatever the fuck I want.

Cristian:

I'm not stuck in this while meanwhile you're stuck in a 3.60 deal.

Sadiq:

And, you know, like, Yeah. Just like all these little references, like, am I battling ghost or AI? Right? And they're like, it's just it's just, like, tell them run to America. They imitate heritage.

Sadiq:

They can't imitate this violence. All these like small and the whole thing with the Crody thing. I I

Cristian:

No. Listen. They called you out. Someone here in Toronto from, but here.

Sadiq:

I I I'll be real with you. I've never heard anyone use that word in my life. I'll be real with you. I'll be real with you. I'll I'll I'll lived in the city, since I was 13.

Sadiq:

I have never heard of you somebody use that light. So

Cristian:

There been a New Hoking?

Sadiq:

I I don't even I I don't think New Hoking is, is this I don't think it's a Toronto restaurant.

Cristian:

It's a it's a Toronto restaurant. Yeah. Let me search it up right now.

Sadiq:

It might be.

Cristian:

But I don't even know your

Sadiq:

city, bro. Okay.

Cristian:

Yeah. New Hokkings, Toronto is let me give you the address. It's on 410 Spadina Avenue, Toronto.

Sadiq:

Yeah. That's, like, that's, like, way outside my usual zone of of of of being in the city, so, that's not surprising. Yeah. So that that whole sentence with a new Hokiang, and eating fried rice with dip sauce. Just the the it's just Oh my god.

Cristian:

The Google reviews first place are fire. I'm so sorry. This is from 10 hours ago. Food here is great, Crody. Fried rice and a dip sauce is the best, Crody.

Sadiq:

Oh my gosh. Of course, I love you. Well, I guess good for them, I guess. So so Euphoria, I think, sort of marks like this. Euphoria feels, I think, the, Euphoria and 616 in LA.

Sadiq:

Right? So Euphoria came out first and then it was 6 I

Cristian:

think the order messed up. It was it was Euphoria, then push ups, then Taylor Made Freestyle, then 6 16 in LA. So 6 16 in LA is was only released on Instagram. I think probably because you can't it's an out green sample you probably couldn't probably couldn't have cleared. And basically 6 16 in LA is just telling Drake, like, hey, I know your next move.

Cristian:

You have people in OVO who are leaking shit to me. Are you sure you really wanna do this?

Sadiq:

Yeah. Yeah. Like, the whole, album art is like the glove. Right? And, like, with the you can sort of make out a receipt, on the side of it, sitting on, like, some sort of sports jersey.

Sadiq:

I I think that's a reference to something. I don't know what that's actually a reference to, but it feels like it's referenced to, Yeah. It's just the 16 in LA is just, like, you know, the end of the nice Drake nice Kendrick. Like, Kendrick's not, like he's, like, art. If you really wanna do this, like, you know, we can we can actually go into Twitch.

Cristian:

Also, him calling DJ Akademiks out is very funny.

Sadiq:

Yeah. Yeah. DJ Akademiks. Speaking of culture vultures, you know, family matters is is is I think the last time Drake is actually making any relevant points. Right?

Sadiq:

Like, anything that could be considered, like, a good like, you know, relevant in the sense of the that is relevant to the beef. What do you think first of all, my question is, the whole music video thing, Like, what what did you think of the music video?

Cristian:

He he got the wrong car for the good kid, mad city van. Yeah. It's a it's a I think it was a Town and Country that Kendrick had on it. It's a different it's a different it's they look the same but it's not the right car. And that is, I think, ultimately, a microcosm.

Cristian:

I had to take the smallest point of Drake's issue is that he can't even be fucking bothered to buy the correct car to to crash or to to smush, because in the video basically Drake ends up, compressing or like, junking, a brand new minivan that's supposed to look like the one from the Good Kid, Mad City album cover, but it's the wrong fucking model car. Like that's the that that's like just Drake in a nutshell. Now, the video, I mean they shot it in Hoking, which is very funny because it's like did Kendrick know that in Euphoria? Or did Drake do that because of Euphoria?

Sadiq:

Yeah. That's, that's the point of, like, what's the timeline on that. Right? Like, I feel like either way is, is possible. I know I did all the whole thing, you know okay.

Sadiq:

So this whole thing where, Drake implies that Kendrick's kids are not his, right? Where he implies that, Dave Free. I forget who Dave Free is. Who who is Dave Free? Is he like a producer or like a fan of Kendrick?

Cristian:

Okay. So we need to take a moment back. So basically, there's in the actual track, there's a few allegations. So Drake spends the first half of it going after Rick Rosser, I'd be on Ozempic in the weekend for being apparently not straight, which is fucked up. And he goes after, like, a bunch of other people, because whatever, because Drake can't focus on one person.

Cristian:

But when he talks about Kendrick, his beefs are Kendrick's son is actually his manager, Dave Freas' kid, that who fucked his baby mama, and that Kendrick, beat his wife. Those are the 2 big allegations on this track. Yeah.

Sadiq:

Those are 2 big allegations. Yeah. Yeah. So, the the day free allegation has nothing back like, there's nothing there. Right?

Sadiq:

Like, as far as we know, like, it's just like a

Cristian:

I mean, there's nothing also with the whole white being his white thing. And I think to be I wanna, you know, there's a lot of allegations we have from here on out. And normally we believing victims is is the the MO. The issue being, right, is who am I more subject to believe, Drake or Kendrick on like an allegation. And the reason I'm less subject to believe Drake on these actually being true, with put, you know, be I think it's pretty obvious, but by a source of conjecture, we're not gonna lie about that, is the fact of is that Whitney, the person who Drake was claiming he beat, is all over mister Morale.

Cristian:

If like someone beat you and they're separated, right, they're no longer together, like that's made clear mister Morale that like he you know, she left him for him cheating him cheating on him. And he admitted about cheating on him, you know, he admitted he admitted rather he cheated on her and he was pretty honest about all that shit. I I don't find that to be credible because, like, it just it it doesn't make sense. Right? Like, if if because there are some lines you can't cross and that's one of them, you know.

Cristian:

For someone who's a because she's a, like, a famous stylist or something like that. Like, she runs, like, some kind of studio in LA. So it's not like she's not, like, a private person in terms of, like, you know, doesn't have a public job. Like, she does do, like, actual work with celebrities in LA. So, like, we would be hearing more about that?

Sadiq:

Yeah. This this just feels like I I don't know. This this feels like something that Drake sort of heard secondhand and is sort of just putting it out there, just, you know, just more what's the term for it? Flack. Like, you know, like, it's just like noise, really.

Sadiq:

Like, it's like it's it's it's a thing that he's just putting up. You know? And, you know, this whole he's, like, bringing colorism into this. Right? Because, I mean, colorism here is is a complex topic.

Sadiq:

Right? Because I I think I don't know if you're equipped to deal or talk about this, but, like

Cristian:

I think we're I think we're equipped to talk about one thing, and it's that Drake has no, sorry, a Canadian man, I don't care what color you are, has no right to tell someone in the US that you're rapping like you're free like you're freeing slaves. There is a historical amount of ignorance in that line.

Sadiq:

Yeah. Yeah. That's, that's, that's that's yeah. That's that's that's that's a given. Yeah.

Sadiq:

Like, he's talking about yeah. The colorism stuff is Kendrick is also playing with this. Right? Like, Kendrick is obviously playing with this. He's he's implying that, you know, Drake is, you know, Drake wants to be black.

Sadiq:

Right? Like, Drake Drake doesn't feel like he's this is not this is not even a thing that only Kendrick has said, and many critics, many people talking about this have long spent, like, a Drake, a lot of Drake's sort of culture vulture aspects are him trying to be black. Right? Like, he is trying to embody this identity that he feels he doesn't have. Right?

Sadiq:

He he he wants he really wants to be black. Right? And that's that's sort of Kendrick implying that multiple times. And over here in in Family Matters, like, he's he's talking about you, the black messiah, wifing up a mixed queen, like like, whoo, like, the colorism is is coming from both sides, but this this is what is.

Cristian:

Well, I think Drake's Kendrick's arguments towards Drake's are a little more rooted in actual reality? Because I I mean, I don't Reality. Yeah. Yeah. We gotta kinda try it carefully here, but I don't know.

Cristian:

You have a an actor from the Ridge part of Toronto who grew up with a white mother, who, yes, is mixed, but, like, there's a cultural aspect of it. Right? Like, I race and ethnicity are always tied together in weird ways. Right? You know, but I think for, like, someone from my angle where I or my perspective rather, where I grew up in New England.

Cristian:

Right? I grew up in the States. I can't really claim some of the Central Americanness that, like, if I grew up there, even though that's technically my, you know, my ethnicity. You just don't have that claim because you're not from there. Right?

Cristian:

I can respect it, I can learn it, I can, you know, go there and, like, partake in it as a visitor, but I'm not always gonna be a 100%, you know, from there. And it's not family roots, sure, but not my actual roots. Right? It's like the same way if you had, like, if you end up having, like, kids in in Toronto, it's not like your kids could ever really claim, like, some of the stuff that you had growing up where you grew up.

Sadiq:

Exactly. Yeah. So it's sort of, yeah, it's a matter of life experiences and not just, like, what do you inherit, necessarily. Yeah. This is a complex discussion that obviously, like, there's a lot there, and, we could spend a lot of time just dissecting sort of why Drake.

Cristian:

But still but still, Kendrick Lee is unpacking it in a thoughtful way, I think. Whereas Drake is just like you rap like you're freeing slaves. Which is like I don't know. I don't know if that's really the angle. That's a that's a bad bar.

Cristian:

Although he does some funny one liners, you know, when you're standing up your your back's against a curb. That's a fun short joke. That's a that's a good one.

Sadiq:

Yeah. That's all he's got, though. Like, he's he's just got short jokes. And at this point, like, yeah, that's all you got. Like, it's it's not enough, like, for for anything to, like, actually have any sticking power or any strength behind it.

Sadiq:

What he says on some Bobby shit, who's who's Bobby? Is he referring to, like Whitney

Cristian:

and Bobby Brown because Bobby Brown be

Sadiq:

Oh, right. Oh, yeah. The the Whitney. Okay. Now

Cristian:

Whitney Houston. Yeah.

Sadiq:

Whitney Houston. Yeah. Okay. So, yeah, Family Matters, just, like yeah. Yeah.

Sadiq:

Like, he he's implying that, you know, if if Drake's shooter's doing TikToks, that he's, like, realest shooter in your gang that's p's brother. Y'all ain't getting shit shot. Like, he's implying that, like, Kendrick isn't actually from the hood. Like, he's not he's not he he isn't about that life, which like from a like a if you like go zoom out for a bit, Kendrick is is an extremely popular and rich artist. He's not from the hood anymore.

Sadiq:

Right? Like, he's he's not. Right? Like, that's that's I think, like, factually, that's correct. But from, like, like, from, like, a narrative perspective, like, from, like, talking about Kendrick as a whole.

Sadiq:

Like, I don't think that's true. Like, it's it's not, like, actual

Cristian:

I mean, it doesn't work too because he's basically calling Kendrick saying, you know, he doesn't even put a city on anymore. Or like Top Dog Entertainment runs like annual food and charity drives in Compton. Like there's like whole, like, food banks and stuff they do run over there. It's like there's there's proof to it. Like you, it's factually incorrect.

Cristian:

Like, that's the thing. So, I mean so from, like, a content perspective, Family Matters is just really wack. From a b perspective, a rapid perspective, like, this is the closest we've gotten to if you're not if you're reading this, it's too late, Drake, in a while.

Sadiq:

Yeah. Sure is. Yeah. Yeah. That's it's this is the closest Drake has got to actually rapping properly.

Sadiq:

Yeah. It's just it's just I yeah. Yeah. It's it's it's a long ass track too, and it's like so much of it is just like taking, shots at other people as well. Like, Pharrell gets, like, mentioned again, like, you know, he's he's making reference to the Prince and Mike thing, which sure whatever.

Sadiq:

It's just and the only reason this track was even remotely interesting to me was the music video. And that's it. A Drake music video is, is is is is the only interesting part we got out of this. So we wanna talk about the next the next track on this. Didn't this come out basically, like, 45 minutes after

Cristian:

30. Come about 30 minutes after it.

Sadiq:

30:30 minutes after Family Battle. So Kendrick already had meet the grabs recorded and all that before, like, before, like, Family Matters came out, like, and he instantly just, like, hit publish on that. Like, it's kinda crazy, to have that happen. I don't think we've ever had that sort of response being so fast. And Meet the Grams is Meet the Grams is, I think

Cristian:

the most harrowing diss track I've ever heard in my life. So for for what Meet the Grams is, Meet the Grams is basically Aubrey Graham is Drake's name. Right? And Kendrick is basically addressing everyone in Drake's family and then addresses Drake. And it's like in the most monotone like I'm just gonna sit you down and talk to you flow.

Cristian:

So he first he starts by talking to Adonis, Drake's son, and says, dear Adonis, I'm sorry that that man is your father, which to be clear is a wild thing to tell a 7 year old.

Sadiq:

Yeah. That's that's yeah. And to to be fair to Kendrick, he's also saying that you don't listen to this until until you're old enough to listen to this. Right? Like, he's the last.

Cristian:

Yeah. But it but, like, the way he's addressing is, like, hey, your father ain't shit. Let me teach you how to, you know, when we put you on real game, Here's what it's like to be an actual human and be a black man even though you're mixed. And then and then he goes after Drake's mother and then he calls out Drake's father and says, I blame you for all his issues. You raised a fucking horrible human.

Cristian:

And then here's the part where it gets to the PDF downloader allegations. So basically, the argument in Meet the Grams is OVO is fronting a sex ring in Toronto and that there are sex offenders on payroll and that they are knowingly aware of that and Drake is just completely complicit in it and this one doesn't actually say PDF downloader, it hints to it though. It hints, it is, it's not straight to call out, it hints to it and says, hey, you know, if you if your if your sister is like Drake, tell your nieces to stay away from him. And I think the reason that this these hold way more water than any of the claims Drake made in Family Matters is.

Sadiq:

Yeah.

Cristian:

There's been enough noise about this for years. Right? Of, like, Drake DM ing, yeah, young kids on Instagram.

Sadiq:

Yeah. It is. The the Bobby the not Bobby, Millie. Yeah. The Millie Brown girl, right?

Sadiq:

The whole thing with Millie. So this has been a sort of in the background for years, as you mentioned. So it is it just does feel more credible.

Cristian:

Also too, there is an actual sex offender on, Baca, whatever his name is. Baca on OVO. Baca not nice, was arrested was credibly arrested. Let me see. There's a Complex article.

Cristian:

He was arrested for, what does Complex say? Yeah. He was arrested for forcing a 22 year old woman into prostitution in 2014. He pleaded guilty to it in a Toronto court and but the charges were dropped against him. He is a woman that refused to testify.

Cristian:

So, that's, he pleaded guilty, but the the charges got dropped. He should refuse to testify. There's a certain level of power and influence on that, but that's a like, these are not allegations. That's, like, in the legal record there, so that is true. Like, that is true.

Cristian:

There are that I would classify that person as a predator. But yeah. Like, so that that is the claims are valid and it's just the way that Kendrick delivers that. It's not even like there's no there's no funny bars about it, but I think afterwards the next part though when he addresses Drake's daughter, like it doesn't matter if it's true or false I guess, because that like I think everyone's kind of freaking over this track because he pulls out that you're hiding child line again and says that Drake has 11 year old daughter, which is fine and all, but, like, if we take the grand scheme of things, a child no one knows about or running a sex ring in Toronto. I think the the the the former or rather the the latter there, the more important claims to even address.

Cristian:

But there's that, and then he calls out Drake's character. It just basically ends it by yelling at Drake saying that he's lied about everything. I think my favorite line of this is, like, I tried to empathize with you, but there's but you've never gone through anything tough in your life.

Sadiq:

That's like it's it's it's there that this track is so heavy. Right? Like, this track is just it's it's it's written in the form of this letter. Right. Which just and it feels so personal and so heavy in a way that's not attractive.

Sadiq:

You can like, what what the first time I listened to this, I was like and and honestly, we gotta talk about the production on this. It's fucking the the alchemist, produced this beat, and it's the most, like, harrowing shit. Like, the the beat at in juxtaposition with the lyrics here just feels so weird. So just just just harrowing. It's it's it's just bizarre, like, it's it's kinda like such a and, like, one of the things I sort of get away from this track is Kendrick's talking about, how, you know, soliciting women problems, therapy's a lovely start.

Sadiq:

Right? Like, he's talking about how Drake has all these issues, and, he needs therapy, and he keeps lying about all these things. And, like, the last line of the song is, like, the mic drop, I think, which is, like, fuck a rap battle. This is a long life battle with yourself, which, like, that that's it's it's it's a lot. It's a lot going on.

Sadiq:

This, I feel like could have been the end of the end of the beef. End of not end of the beef, but end of the this particular section of I felt like this was a definitive track. It was it was a track that sort of end I felt like the last line sort of concluded things in a way that, you know, that felt like it was Kendrick just being like, okay. I've said my thing. And, and, you know, it's it's a problem that you need to deal with yourself.

Sadiq:

And I thought that was gonna be the end of it, but it was not. Like, we this was this was like a weekend. Like, we are just, like, sitting here just, like, chilling. I'm just like, oh, this new new new new track. There are a few tracks.

Sadiq:

3 3 I mean, one of them is not really a track, just an instrumental, but we gotta talk about that a bit. Not which one do we wanna talk about? BBL? I think I should have BBL Jersey out of the way. BBL Jersey.

Sadiq:

I'm sorry. Every time I mentioned the name of the song, the melody plays in my head, and it just about it's the catchiest melody, I swear to God. So when he insulted Metro Booming and told him to shut the fuck up and make some drums, Metro Booby responded with, a b b l

Cristian:

Taking that shit to heart.

Sadiq:

Yeah. He he he said, alright, babe. Alright. I'm gonna make some drums, and he made this I think it's like it's like the vocals are, like, AI generated. The vocals

Cristian:

are AI. Yeah. The vocals are for

Sadiq:

my Yeah. Yeah. Vocals are AI generated, But, like, there's these heavy drums on this, and it's this catchy melody of, like, best BBL in the world. They collect thick thicker than a snicker. Is that what is that one of the lines?

Sadiq:

Like, it's this, like, just a sample looped over and over again. It's so good. Honestly, it's just, I, it's just the funniest. This this this BBL Drizzy is the funniest track out of this. It doesn't even actually have any verses on it.

Sadiq:

It's it's it's truly a masterpiece in that sense.

Cristian:

And there's a challenge to our Metro so to give $10,000 in a free beat to anyone who has

Sadiq:

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So now we gotta talk about, not like us.

Sadiq:

Right?

Cristian:

Which is a banger of the summer, one of the most streams tracked on Spotify right now, this song actually slaps and I'm not afraid to say it.

Sadiq:

It is it's this is the thing he made. He accused Drake of some very serious things and put it on a mustard beat, which and not even just like it with a hook on it and with with, like, a club banger. Like, this is the song you could play at the club, and people are singing along to this. So let's let's get into this. There's so much going on here.

Sadiq:

The He's beaming

Cristian:

on him. Okay. Let's sit here. Oh, listen. It's it's really it's clouding on some and the best thing is too, it's always okay to make fun of abusers in this in this capacity.

Cristian:

You know, like let's let's once again, we're gonna the allegations are serious, I'm gonna put that aside for a moment just to say it's never not funny to make fun of shitty people. It's never not funny to make fun of shitty people. And to him, he's just being like, hey, Drake, I heard you like I'm young, certified lover boy, certified PDF file. You're trying to strike a chord, but it's probably a minor. That is That

Sadiq:

that is probably my favorite line in a and not just the way not just the line, but the way he delivers that line where he he says e minor and he, like, stretches the note. Right? Like, he, like, lingers on the note, which is just like from now on, every time I hear the phrase a minor, it's just gonna this song is just gonna come.

Cristian:

Kindred is just gonna be in your head saying it that way.

Sadiq:

Yeah. Just it just stuck now. It's just like it's a cultural object. Now it's like the way, like, you know, is he it's it's stuck. And like, you know, he implies, like, this is like an implied threat here too.

Sadiq:

Like, you know, like, the I think that Oakland show gonna be your last stop. You know, did Cole file, which is, like, I think, like, the second time J. Cole got reference or, like, J. Cole got, like, a

Cristian:

No. On on Family Matters, Drake called Cole a bitch. And and even better is the album cover. So basically, it's a Citizen app. Right?

Cristian:

Which, to be clear, fuck the Citizen app. That app is problematic for so many reasons. But it's like all the registered sex offender pins that it's on Drake's home in Toronto. Like, you it's so fucking funny.

Sadiq:

It is so funny. Yeah. This one is Kendrick like sort of doing a victory lap really. And, like, so many, you know, what was that? What's OVO for?

Sadiq:

The other vaginal option.

Cristian:

He's just called Drake a bitch in so many different ways.

Sadiq:

And there's the references to stuff like fucked on Wayne girl while he was in jail. That we know for sure, actually. This is like a thing that we actually know because Wayne talked about it. Right? Wayne Loewen here, specifically, he talked about it in some memoir or, like, some Yeah.

Cristian:

In a book he wrote while he was in jail.

Sadiq:

Yeah. So he thought about that that this was a real event that happened, you know, which well, okay. You know, he's talking about, better not speak on Serena, and Serena, I think, is referring to, Serena Williams, the

Cristian:

because she's from Compton. Yeah. Also, Drake makes fun of, 40 for having, MS. He says he says better straighten their posture. They got famous all up in Compton.

Cristian:

Oh my god. He's hunched over like he's 80.

Sadiq:

Oh, lord. 6. 6. 6. 6.

Sadiq:

Pusha T, make it that was that that that light was fucking that's

Cristian:

You even get freaking wrestling references? Sweet chin music, and I won't pass the aux.

Sadiq:

Yeah. Sweet chin music. Yeah. Yeah. There's wrestling ref so he's just having fun.

Sadiq:

Right? Like, it's just this is

Cristian:

Oh, he's calling him a 69 god. It's just so it's it's everything gets even better. And then the best part is though, he's memeing for the first half of the song. They get the verse 3. And I'm just I I don't like reading bars all out, but I have to for a minute.

Cristian:

Once upon a time, all of us was in chains. Homie's still doubling down calling us slaves. Atlanta was the mecca building roads and trains. Bear with me for a second while we put you on game. The settlers using town folk to make them richer fast forward to 20 4 2024.

Cristian:

You have the same agenda. You run to Atlanta when you need a check balance. Calls him, he says you're not a colleague. You're a fucking colonizer. Like, yo.

Sadiq:

Yep. If it is and he, like, he he just says, like, this is, like, you know, you call future when you did see the club. Right? Little baby, help get you Like, and he also I think on a previous tech, he, I think it was at euphoria where he says, I don't care who you hang out with. Lil Yachty is not gonna make you, like, cool.

Sadiq:

Right? Like, little hanging out with little Yachty is not gonna not gonna make you, you know, be in this culture. Like, 21/21 gave you false street credit, like, you know, like, thought thought made me feel like a slime in your head. Like, all these lines, like, and, you know, it ends with, like, it was God's plan to show y'all the liar, which, you know, create great light, like, the whole references. And we got a we got a 60 the 69 God, the E Minor, Certified Loverboy line.

Sadiq:

Like, those are just, like, I feel like we're gonna look back on this, like, decade of hip hop. It'd be like, these are some, like, most iconic sort of lines of hip hop we've had for a long time. Just and I can like, that beat this beat is so good. I love I cannot get enough of the DJ Mustard Be like this. Like, it's so it's it's so good.

Sadiq:

I I I just I just it's it's perfect. It's a perfect track. It's it's this is and the thing is, Ken, Kendrick made a club band. Kendrick usually, like, you know, we we talk about how Kendrick doesn't Kendrick is not really a lot of his music is not really meant for, like, parties or, like, clubs or whatever. But, like, this is just Kendrick just being like, I'm gonna just have some fun and make, a club banger, put teach put a Digi Master beat on it, and I'm just gonna meme on this idiot, like, just just straight up meme.

Cristian:

So good. And the thing is too, it's like, it meet the grams, and it goes Kendrick playing his own game. And then not like us as Kendrick playing his Drake game. Because Drake all it's like, you okay? You you say I don't make record hits.

Cristian:

I don't make club hits. Alright. Fair enough. Here's here's the club hit. Here's here's here's one that people can dance to.

Sadiq:

Yep. And I know that that you're not a colleague. You're a fucking colonizer. It's just, like, that's, that's a lot. That's, that's a lot of people are gonna, you know, not forget.

Sadiq:

And not contend with taking elves, I guess. Drake responded to this with quite possibly the worst response to a Drake, to a track, to diss track I've ever heard in my life. First of all

Cristian:

The first one I can believe that Drake wrote himself.

Sadiq:

Yeah. Because it's bad. Like, it's real bad. Like, it's first of all, he called it the hard part's sakes, which is just like, bro, you don't like, you don't get to call that like, you don't get to use that name because, first of all, you're not even close to being able to rap anywhere like Kendrick does, like he did on the heart. And it's just like like, he starts on the line, Like, it it is a whole so the thing with this track is, his his his basic defense, against being a Pedialyte drinker, as empty signifier likes to say, is if I'm if I was a young girl, I'd promise I'd been arrested.

Sadiq:

I'm way too famous for this shit you just suggested.

Cristian:

We have so much historical evidence of that not being true. What the fuck? Yeah.

Sadiq:

Yeah. What's what do you like, the whole Jeffrey Epstein thing, like, there's so much evidence, so much like historical things, historical, sort of events that could point to, like, extremely powerful and famous people get being able to get away with extremely heinous acts. I know that kinda shit. So Drake just saying that, you know, he's too famous to do that is just like, what are you on about? Like, it's it's that's literally one of the problems.

Sadiq:

It's like you're you're you're too famous, and you think you could get away with it. Like, he's just like, you know, it's it's it's just it's not good. Like, this not not none of this track is is, you know, it's it's it's Drake doesn't have any proper response. You know? It's it's just Drake trying to, like, he's just pulling he's he's coming out empty, like, there's nothing here.

Sadiq:

He he would have been better for him to have not put this out. Like, he it's just not it's not it's not not not this

Cristian:

I think what did you once tell me? It's free to shut the fuck up?

Sadiq:

Yeah. It's free to shut the fuck up. It's free to shut the fuck up. And Drake knows this because Drake never responded to Pusha T. Right?

Sadiq:

Like, Drake never responded the story of Anadark directly. So he could have after after Not Like Us came out, I felt like he could have just shut the fuck up. Like, you know, just stop talk, like, you just see.

Cristian:

Also too, I just wanna be very clear. People have seen It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia know this, but you don't address allegations of being a diddler by making a song saying how you don't diddle. Like, that's literally not what you do in those cases for those allegations.

Sadiq:

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Sadiq:

And he's like, he's speaking to Dave Freestyle back again. Like, he's just like, it's not it's nothing here. It's it's it's the

Cristian:

because no one cares too in the culture. Like, no one cares. Because even then, if one of Kendrick kids is like, okay, that's great. That means Kendrick's the kind of man that would is okay being a father to a child not its own just because it helps build family. I don't like, Drake, what you want?

Cristian:

What you want? The nuclear family? Well, you only want you you wanna like, I don't it's 2,024 families come in different sizes, dude.

Sadiq:

Yeah. Exactly. And, like, it doesn't make Drake like, it doesn't actually really make, Kendrick look bad in that context. Right? Because Kendrick is here talking about how he's a family man.

Sadiq:

He's taking care of the kids. Right? You know, all that shit. You know, spending time. Like, he's like, you know, I which I don't forget which tag.

Sadiq:

He's like, my life ain't crap, and, you know, I'm not out here trying to, like, dig up dirt on people.

Cristian:

It was on, 616 LA. He's like, I'm sorry you put money in the streets and you get nothing back. What can I say? I love a peaceful life.

Sadiq:

Yeah. Like, man's out here trying to live live family life, and, he's just yeah. So this is just it doesn't it doesn't work. You know? Like, what is this slide where he says, like, this Epstein angle was the shit I expected.

Sadiq:

Like, what?

Cristian:

That's the funniest part. He's trying to say he planted his information. To be clear to be clear, this is for anyone on planet Earth. If you're like, hey, you know what, I'm a get someone. I'm a plant.

Cristian:

I'm a plant a fake flag down a PDF file. No. That's the

Sadiq:

Yeah. What? Yeah. It's

Cristian:

No. You don't do that. Like, what? And, and you know what?

Sadiq:

The the the worst part about this track is where he implies that the only reason Kendrick is, making these raps about him being a pure light drinker is that Kendrick was abused himself, which is a fundamental misunderstanding of one of Kendrick's

Cristian:

Oh my god. I forgot about that fucking lie. Yeah. It's the one where he's like, oh, that mother I sober track where you talk about being abused as a child. And it's like, first and foremost, you no one like it I don't even know how to like address how how to tell someone that it's wrong and that you're not gonna win any battles when he tells someone that, you know, hey.

Cristian:

You you can't you don't make fun of people for being abused as children. Like, it's not like, it just does it. You you lose the audience at that point. Everyone, like

Sadiq:

Yep. Everyone. Yeah. Yeah. Even even Drake fans, he's like, oh, you have to look at this.

Sadiq:

Like, you can't be like, this is good. Like, in any way, I should perform. Like, you can't you can't, like, be, like, hey. Like, this line where he says that that's the one record where you say you got molested. Oh, fuck me.

Sadiq:

I just made the whole connection. This is about to get so depressing. This is trauma from your own confessions, which is just like first thing is he misunderstood what mother I say actually is saying. He has basic reading comprehension problems because on that track, it's not Kendrick is not talking about him being abused. He's talking about how his mother always used to ask him if he was being abused, and they would she wouldn't believe him when he said no.

Sadiq:

And he has trauma from that. That's what he was talking about on mother, I say. And that and that's not even, like, subtext or metaphor. That's, like, straight up the text of that song. So Drake is just, like, he can't he he he's not even doing basic, like, media literacy here.

Sadiq:

Like, it's just straight up making shit up, misunderstanding a trap, you know. And second of all, like, accusing someone, accusing someone, of just using the trauma as, you know, like, as as as a weapon here at try using the trauma as, like, the reason they are making accusations against you. It's just so vile on on, like, it's on so many levels. This at this point, it's just, like, even for a rap beef, like, this is just like just a this is like a on a level that's just like unconscionable, honestly. So how like, this is the end of it.

Sadiq:

This this track is the end of this particular sort of segment of the Drake, Kendrick thing. So where do we go from here? Like, I know this is, like, sort of died down a bit, but, like, is this I feel like we have an inflection point here, like, going forward. Like, how does Drake come back from this? You know?

Sadiq:

Like, what does what does Drake do? And what what is Kendrick's Kendrick's move? I don't think I don't Kendrick I think Kendrick has status part. I don't think Kendrick is gonna do anything. He's he said all he needs to say.

Sadiq:

So I'm just wondering what Drake is going to do after this point.

Cristian:

I don't I don't think Kendrick's I mean, Kendrick probably got stuff locked and loaded in case Drake drops something. But at this point, even if you're Drake, you gotta understand. I think he recognizes that the public opinion is not towards him, so he's not gonna win any anything in the court of public opinion. It's really what a rap battle is. Right?

Cristian:

His beef is just a court of public opinion, and I'm unsure of if any I I think he finally learned that shutting the fuck up is the right move.

Sadiq:

Yep. Finally. Yeah. Like, he should've so I we had another topic in this, episode, about the Microsoft fuck ups, but I don't know if there is enough time for us to talk about that. Like, we Yeah.

Cristian:

We just we just had a full hour on this beef. So I mean the the short of it really is, you know, we don't have to go too deep into it, but I think me and you could both we could just quickly summarize it. Microsoft, shut down Tango Gameworks, their only Japanese studio that made Hi Fi Rush and, Evil Within. They shut down a few other studios in a mobile game studio, and then immediately said, you know, we're not succeeding, because we don't have enough smaller games.

Sadiq:

Yeah. I I don't even like, my response to this has just been, like, what the fuck is going on at the executive level, over at Microsoft? Makes absolutely no sense to anybody. And, the famous, like the I think I think some of the point here, the overarching point is that it doesn't matter if your game is good or it's successful. Hi Fi Rush, right, was massively success.

Sadiq:

And even Microsoft themselves was like, Hi Fi Rush was, you know, a success. Like, it was it was it was like a a game that came out with, no no marketing, and no no no sort of, like, pre release hype to it. It just sort of dropped out of nowhere, and it just really was quite successful. But here we are, you know, just like killing the studio. We're killing the studio that made, Prey, you know, immersive sim studio.

Sadiq:

What is it? Arkane, which which arcane studio got shut? Arcade Austin? Yeah. Arcade Austin.

Cristian:

Arcane Austin, I think. Yep.

Sadiq:

Like, these these arcade studios are made like dishonor, dishonor 2, Prey, and most recently, of course, Redfall. And it and this sort of makes it so that it doesn't actually matter if your game was a flop like Redfall was, or if it was a success like HiFi Rush, it doesn't matter. There's no, like, the the success metric is not the logic that is being used to people I I think one of the narratives that I've I wanna, like, touch on here is that people saying that, of course, the studio that God made made Redfall, gosh, I've done it. And to that, I'm gonna be like, y'all listen to yourself. Like, you think that a studio making one bad game that they didn't really want to make and we're basically forced to make in a in a genre that is not their specialty, deserves like, if like, first of all, if 1 if a studio makes one bad game, you don't get this there's no deserving to get shut down here.

Sadiq:

Like, that's just, like, what is that? Does that even mean? Right? Like, there's no you're just, like, you know, the narrative here. Like, it's just it it's it's not a good thing that Arkane got shot down because they made landfall.

Sadiq:

Like, what what does that even really mean? So, yeah, this is this is an l. Microsoft is, I don't know, and what the fuck is Microsoft doing? What is Sony doing? And, you know, Xbox president just giving some weird ass statements that don't say anything.

Sadiq:

Phil Spencer is just like, I'm so sad. I'm a gamer. Whatever, man. Whatever the fuck, like, he's like it it it does all this just there's no logic. It's a Microsoft is saying that they wanna focus on, like, core the core franchises, which to which I'm saying, at this point, what are your core franchise?

Sadiq:

Halo is floundering. Right? So you've got, like, what, Forza, you've got years of war, you've got, these franchises, but it also had these 3rd party franchises that were doing super well. Like, Hi Fi Rush, there could have been a second game with with with the same style as Hi Fi Rush. There could have been more immersive sims, sort of those prestige games.

Sadiq:

So it's just it's just bizarre. There's not much else to say about it. It's just absolutely asinine behavior from from Microsoft at this point. Fuck Microsoft, I guess. Let's and is there anything else that we need to say before we wrap this up?

Cristian:

Yeah. Satya Nadella is probably coming down to Phil Spencer's office and being like, yo, Office is making money. Windows is making money. Why why are we burning money on Xbox? We'll be burning money on AI instead.

Cristian:

You know what I say? I say, fair enough, fair enough. I mean, if Xbox is gonna keep shutting on studios, might as well might as well move those GPUs something better. This is the joke. I'm kidding.

Cristian:

Okay. But, no, it's I I'm unsure. I'm I'm unsure on what the plan is there. People have been calling for Phil Spencer to stand down. I think it's Microsoft corporate structure.

Cristian:

That is probably the bigger issue. They keep acquiring huge companies, and then they are like, well, what do we do with all this IP? And, like, oh, we have to optimize. And it's, like, why did you acquire them in the first place? I don't the whole games market is fucked right now.

Cristian:

There's a bunch of great aftermath pieces that we put in the show notes, which you can find at vops.fm that you should absolutely read. But, yeah, let's wrap this up. That has been this has been this episode where, we feel about rap beef, which is really 2 grown men singing poetry at each other. And you know what? I think that's beautiful.

Cristian:

But

Sadiq:

Yeah. That's this, I I I this this is not this is I've been looking forward to this discussion about about this beef. So, as always, show notes to voxels.fm. You can find me on on the fediverse at packetcatenforward.social and on our website, soticsafe.com, and you can send a feedback to us. What's the address again?

Sadiq:

Feedback at

Cristian:

feedback at voxels.fm.

Sadiq:

Alright. That's the email address. Send us send us emails. What are your thoughts on the Drake versus Kendrick, beef? What's your favorite line?

Sadiq:

What's your favorite, beat? And if you're a Drake fan, don't don't email us, please. I don't wanna I don't wanna get any Drake stands in my fucking inbox. I don't think

Cristian:

And if you're from Toronto, please produce better artists.

Sadiq:

Twice? Let's leave Toronto on this. Toronto has enough problems without Drake being here. What would Doug Ford do? Oh my god.

Sadiq:

Alright. This this is it. Let's wrap this up. This has been episode, 8 of Voxel's. I didn't

Cristian:

even get to say Rob.

Sadiq:

I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Yeah. Sure.

Cristian:

Fuck me. Jesus. Yeah. Sure. Fuck me.

Cristian:

I get it. Okay. You can find me online at loficarrots@msdn.plus for website, trust find that website where I will be posting about how bad Asus is and how I need to find a new gaming PC to buy. But, yeah, until until next time. Bye.

Cristian:

Goodbye.