"Different energy now": Jamal Crawford wants Kendrick Lamar-Drake beef to fade after elite rap battle turns personal with fresh releases
Amid the intense rap feud between rappers Kendrick Lamar and Drake, former NBA player Jamal Crawford called out the rap battle for turning personal. Crawford took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to commend the battle and also called for the beef between the two Grammy-winning artists to fade.
"That was the best rap battle EVER…but no more songs, it’s a different energy now..," Crawford tweeted.
The feud that started in the second half of March 2024 escalated recently and turned personal when Drake released "Family Matters" in response to Lamar's "6:16 in LA." Kendrick then responded with his new diss track "Meet the Grahams" soon after Drake took his jab. Both rappers took hits at each other's families with their songs to make matters overtly personal.
Kendrick Lamar-Drake rap feud timeline
The ongoing rap feud between Kendrick Lamar and Drake can be traced back to Oct. 6, 2023, when Drake released "First Person Shooter" in collaboration with Grammy-winning artist J. Cole. In the track, Cole raps that he, Drake and Lamar are the "big three" of rap.
About six months later, Lamar was featured on Metro Boomin and Future’s song “Like That,” in which he slammed Drake and Cole for "sneak dissing." Lamar rejected the idea of the "big three" and rapped "It's just me" instead.
Not long after, J. Cole released a diss track on Lamar called "7 Minute Drill." However, Cole backed down from the feud just two days after releasing the track with a public apology during a concert.
Drake also responded to Lamar with his diss track "Push Ups," which slammed Lamar for his short stature and his mainstream collaboration with artists such as Taylor Swift and Maroon 5.
Drake subsequently released another song on Kendrick Lamar called "Taylor Made Freestyle," which featured AI-generated voices of Snoop Dogg and the late Tupac Shakur. He dared Lamar to respond, rapping "We waitin' on you" in the track.
Around two weeks later, Kendrick Lamar dropped "Euphoria" in which he calls out Drake's biracial identity and slams the rapper's ability as a father. The track also features Lamar calling Drake a "scam artist," questioning his authenticity as an artist.
Three days later, on May 3, Lamar dropped his second diss track on Drake, "6:16 in LA," in which Lamar alleges Drake's own team to be against him. Following this release, Drake responded with his diss track "Family Matter" and Kendrick replied with "Meet the Grahams," both of which featured the disses taking a personal turn in the feud.