Days after Serena Williams joined hands with Kendrick Lamar in Drake diss track, Naomi Osaka shares lyrics of Canadian rapper's famous song

By Rishi D'Souza

Modified Mar 01, 2025 12:16 GMT

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Three weeks after Serena Williams danced to Kendrick Lamar’s famous song Not Like Us at the Super Bowl Halftime show, fellow tennis player Naomi Osaka shared lyrics of one of Drake’s popular songs, The Motion.

Notably, Osaka was asked in May last year whether she was on Team Kendrick or Team Drake. She replied that she was a "pacifist" but enjoyed the music that was coming out of this feud. She later added that she was a "Kendrick fan" and was glad that she was able to get more music from the American rapper.

Lamar and Drake have been engaged in a long-standing feud since 2013 in what has become one of hip-hops most noted rivalries. Since 2024, there have been several diss songs written by the two, and Lamar's Not Like Us is the one that got the most traction. The track won five Grammy Awards and was also named as the song of the year.

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Naomi Osaka shares lyrics from Drake's song following Williams's Super Bowl performance

At the NFL Super Bowl Halftime show three weeks ago, headliner Lamar had a special guest when he performed Not Like Us. He was joined by 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams. The American tennis legend performed at the show with her rendition of the crip walk. Notably, this dance move had brought her flak when she did it at Wimbledon after winning the 2012 London Olympics.

Williams’ performance went viral, and it appeared like she was on Team Lamar. No player had openly associated themselves with Drake until Osaka posted two lines from one of his popular songs.

Osaka, a former World No. 1 and four-time Grand Slam champion, took to Instagram to share a couple of lines from Drake’s song The Motion which was released in 2013.

“Every thing that I write is either for her or about her So I'm with her even when I'm here without her and she know it,” posted Osaka.

Naomi Osaka is making a comeback to the tennis circuit after taking a break following her pregnancy. She made it to the third round of the 2025 Australian Open, which was her best since she returned to action in 2024. However, her campaign was cut short due to an abdominal injury.

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Naomi Osaka reveals how Venus Williams motivated her to start playing tennis

File image of Naomi Osaka and Venus Williams from the Hong Kong Tennis Open in 2017. (Image via Getty)

Osaka had recently shared that one of her main reasons to pick up tennis was watching Serena’s elder sister, Venus Williams play. Naomi Osaka was born in Japan but her family moved to the United States of America when she was young. According to National Women's History Museum's website, her father was inspired by watching the Williams sisters and hence decided to enroll his daughters in the sport.

Speaking to CNN recently, Osaka said she was looking forward to meeting Venus at the 2025 Indian Wells.

“She’s probably the reason why I started playing. It makes me really excited to go to the tournament and see her, and I feel like she probably doesn’t know how many people she’s inspired because even she inspired me – and through me, there’s probably other kids that are inspired. So it keeps the legacy going,” Naomi Osaka said.

Venus Williams, who has been dealing with persistent injuries, will not be in action at Indian Wells, and had dismissed rumours of her allegedly accepting a wildcard to compete at the tournament.