Should Drake and J. Cole Respond to Kendrick Lamar? Here Are Pros and Cons For Each

Pros:

If Drake responds to Kendrick with a well-crafted verse, it would be a reminder to the naysayers that he can do more than just send subliminal shots, because he also has a history of making surgical diss tracks. During his feud with Meek Mill in 2015, he disarmed the Philly rapper with “Charged Up,” which had wild bars like “Come live all your dreams out at OVO/ We gon' make sure you get your bread and you know the ropes,” before ether-ing him with “Back to Back,” the first ever Grammy-nominated diss track. And he might have lost his beef with Pusha-T, but “Duppy Freestyle” is still a very lyrically impressive record. (”I had a microphone of yours, but then the signature faded/ I think that pretty much resembles what's been happenin'” is a cold-ass bar.) If it comes down to it, a new diss record from Drake that isn’t marred by any unnecessary drama could be great for rap and for his own career.

Cons:

If Drake doesn’t bring his A-game, it could backfire and make him look even worse. He has a tendency to play characters in different situations he’s in, and as of late, he’s either been the OVO mob boss who raps about “linking with the opps” for J Prince or the “petty king” who plans to “buy your most personal belongings when they’re up for auction.” The worst thing that Drake could do in this situation is play too deeply into one of these personas and deliver a diss record that’s all about how he’s more rich than Kendrick. Even if it’s true, no one wants to hear that. As the most commercially successful rapper of the last decade, with countless accolades to his name, Drake has a lot to lose in this situation. If he releases a wack response and ultimately loses a battle with Kendrick, it would put a major blemish on his reputation and could knock him off of what many believe is a throne he's been sitting on for years.

My take:

Drake is tired of people playing with his name. He responded to For All The Dogs criticism by releasing a Scary Hours Edition deluxe pack, which was filled with the exact kind of lyricism that many critics said was missing from the original album. He reads every comment and sees what people are saying on the internet, and I don’t think he’s going to let Kendrick get away with bodying him on a song from his old homies Metro Boomin and Future. 

In November, he said that he wrote the five additional Scary Hours songs while he was on the road, explaining that this is the most inspired he’s felt since If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late. If that’s the case, then he shouldn’t have a problem crafting one refined record aimed squarely at Kendrick (and potentially Future and Metro) while he’s on tour. There are plenty of reasons why he would choose not to respond, mainly because Kendrick has the capability to bar him up, but given how explosive “Like That” is, I doubt Drake will stay out of the booth. Now is the time for him to finally respond directly, because Kendrick came at him in a way that was too straightforward for Drake to ignore. If he doesn’t, it might always go down as a “what-if” moment for him and he could be haunted by criticism about backing down to a formidable opponent. He definitely shouldn’t do what he usually does and make a shady Instagram post, followed by sprinkling subliminal disses in every solo rap single, guest verse, and concert speech for the next 6 years. 

Pros:

It’s never been unanimously agreed upon who is better between J. Cole and Kendrick Lamar, but if Cole successfully won a direct war of words, he would finally have more ammo in the debate. Cole had a hell of a year in 2023 as he dominated every feature he appeared on, firmly establishing himself as one of the best MCs alive right now. He’s had friendly sparring matches with Kendrick before, like when they rapped over each other’s beats on their 2015 “Black Friday” singles, and it seems like there is a mutual respect between the two of them. If Cole chose to respond to Lamar's jabs, and did so triumphantly, he would position himself in a class of his own right now. He already had the best verse on Drake’s “First Person Shooter.” Now all that remains is for him to prove that he can out-rap Kendrick on the most visible stage possible.

Cons:

For fans of Cole and Kendrick, the worst-case scenario would be if they ruined their relationship because of a back-and-forth feud. Some are still holding out for a long-awaited collab album between the two of them, and it would be unfortunate if a verse that was primarily aimed at Drake created a rift that went beyond music. For Cole, a loss to Kendrick on a stage like this would strengthen arguments that he is definitively in third place amongst the Big 3. It would be a major blow to his legacy if he went head-to-head and couldn’t meet Kendrick’s lyrical ability. 

My take:

Most of Kendrick’s shots were directed at Drake on “Like That,” and while Cole did catch some bars, I don’t think he will (or should) respond to Kendrick’s verse with bars. Kendrick is more likely to get a phone call from Cole than a verse, which is what he did with Noname after she responded to his “Snow On Tha Bluff.” Plus, Cole and Kendrick don’t have the same contentious history that Dot and Drake do. It wouldn’t be perceived as an L from fans if he chose to stay quiet and let Drake defend himself, so I don't think we'll be hearing any direct shots at Kendrick, which is probably the right call. There’s a lot more risk than reward for Cole when it comes to responding to Kendrick.