JAY-Z has finally shared his thoughts on Drake and Kendrick Lamar‘s epic 2024 rap battle — and his stance might surprise you.
Despite being involved in one of hip-hop’s fiercest feuds with Nas in the early 2000s, Hov believes that Dot and Drizzy’s beef went “too far” and is not a fan of all the negativity and division that continues to fuel their rivalry.
“We love the excitement and I love the sparring and the music you get, but in this day and age, there’s so much negative stuff that comes with it that you almost wish it didn’t happen,” he said in a rare interview with GQ ahead of his recently announced Reasonable Doubt and The Blueprint anniversary shows at New York’s Yankee Stadium in July.
“Now, people that like Kendrick hate Drake, no matter what he makes or says. And it goes far, too. It’s like attacks on his character [and family]. I don’t know if I love that. I don’t know if it’s helpful to our growth.”
The Roc Nation mogul went on to claim that Kendrick and Drake’s beef inadvertently set hip-hop “a couple steps back” and wonders whether the age-old tradition of battling “even needs to be a part of the culture anymore.”
“I hate that I have this point of view because I know what it sounds like, I know what it feels like. I hate it!” he acknowledged, alluding to his own history of involvement in messy rap battles. “It’s just how I feel.”
The 56-year-old also laid out a path for keeping hip-hop’s competitive spirit alive without damaging careers or relationships: “I think we can achieve the same thing, as far as sparring with music, with collaborations more so than breaking the whole thing apart.
JAY-Z also addressed the backlash to Kendrick Lamar’s 2025 Super Bowl halftime show — specifically claims that he and Roc Nation, who oversee the annual spectacle, picked sides in the beef by handing the coveted gig to the Compton superstar.
“I chose the guy that was having a monster year. I think it was the right choice. What do I care about them two guys battling? What’s that got to do with me? Have at it,” he argued.
Hov also laughed off suggestions that he was part of a “conspiracy” to “undermine” Drake: “It’s like, what the fuck? I’m fucking JAY-Z! [laughs.] All due respect to him. I’m fucking Hov. Respectfully. It doesn’t make any sense.”
Check out more highlights from JAY-Z’s conversation with GQ below where he talks about his relationship with J. Cole, the rumors of him jumping on the Clipse‘s Let God Sort Em Out and where he’s at when it comes to new music.
On almost appearing on the Clipse’s Let God Sort Em Out:
I was close. I think the first thing that I say [about the sexual assault lawsuit], it has to be said from me. [Pauses and reconsiders.] I don’t want to be so rigid with it, though. I’m going to keep that open. I’m going to take that back. I don’t want to be so rigid. But at that moment, I was like, “Yeah, I want to do something.” But in order for me to move forward, I got to get this shit out. I got to get it out.
On J. Cole:
I don’t have any negative feelings for him. I’m actually super proud of him and what he’s done … [DJ] Clue sent [J. Cole’s Birthday Blizzard ’26 tape] to me actually, not Cole. I’m a fan of hip-hop and this culture. I’m listening to it all. I play it all. I’m playing songs that most people haven’t heard of.
On new music:
I have a lot of scratch ideas and they’re all bad [laughs]. I got to be honest … I don’t know what I need to create currently that’s going to fulfil me and make me happy, because that’s most important. I know I just got to be honest about what I feel and where I am. Maybe I’m overthinking it. Maybe I’m stopping myself from just creating.
Whatever it is, it just needs to be a true representation of how I feel. Trying to create something that people like is where I think a lot of artists get jammed up. And people can feel that because it’s not authentic. I just got to make something timeless that I really love and that’s really honest and true to who I am.
On Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show:
He could have made it a little easier on himself. The artistic choice to play the new album was brave in front of that big of an audience. Because even if 10 million people know some of these songs, there’s 120 million people that’re like, “What is he doing?” As an artist, to stand up there and do it and complete your vision – I had to tip my hat. I had high respect for him already, but, like, even more my respect was like, “He’s really about what he says he’s about.”
On his past beef with Nas:
[Our feud] didn’t happen at the Summer Jam — that happened with “Lex with TV sets, the minimum”. It was a whole bunch of stuff leading up to that point. I actually regret that because I really like Nas. He’s a really nice guy.
On his since-withdrawn sexual assault lawsuit:
It was hard. Really hard. I was heartbroken. I’m glad we got right to that so we could just get that out the way … That shit took a lot out of me. I was angry. I haven’t been that angry in a long time, uncontrollable anger. You don’t put that on someone — that’s a thing that you better be super sure.
Even when we were doing the worst things, we had those kind of rules. There was a line: no women, no kids. You hear those sayings, but those are the things that I took from the street. We lived and died by that. So it’s strict for me, like it meant a lot to me … I knew that we were going to walk through that because, first of all, it’s not true. And the truth, at the end of the day, still reigns supreme.
On 4:44:
4:44 released a lot. I can’t really even listen to 4:44. It’s the album that I was always afraid to make… Just pure and vulnerable, the real interior thoughts … It was a lot of trauma [growing up], a lot of loss, a lot of seeing things that nine-year-olds shouldn’t be seeing. We tuck it away and we bury it, and then it shows up in different ways … At some point you got to figure out how you’re going to navigate the world.
[My earlier albums were] just all bravado. Part of it was closed off and it works … People like the hothead. That excitement and that danger has an allure to it. That’s Jigga. It was very useful, but it’s also not sustainable. You don’t want to look up one day and just be in some insane asylum somewhere, alone, no family. It’s another side of that that had to happen.
On Reasonable Doubt, 30 years later:
When we first dropped Reasonable Doubt, we sold 43,000 records. The energy was like, “You’re new. You haven’t proven yourself.” But in our mind, the fact that we released an album was proof enough of concept. We did it. Remember, we’re not in control of distribution, marketing, anything. We’re going like a street-level, street-team approach to this. And so when we put the album out — that was the win. We had some success, and remember: on the streets we were platinum. Anywhere you was going to go, you was going to hear Reasonable Doubt.
If you wasn’t there, now you’re looking at the analytics. Someone that speaks like that, you know they wasn’t there because if you were there, you’re like, “This not even a conversation.” Anywhere you went, any car, Reasonable Doubt was going to play.
On J. Cole’s early struggles on Roc Nation:
The narrative is that we [Roc Nation] didn’t love Cole. No, we believed in him enough to let him find his journey. It took him a minute, but he found his way. I was giving him a chance to take his talent and show it to the most people possible, but his way. I didn’t say, “Here’s this record from Stargate and you putting it out.” Like I forced Bleek to make “Memphis Bleek Is…”
Bleek is my little brother; he has to listen to me. But for J. Cole, he has to find his own direction and I’m going to give him the tools. Stargate made humongous records with Rihanna; Wiz Khalifa “Black and Yellow”. Biggest songs in the world. You don’t want to go sit with them? Fine.
On the backlash to him being a billionaire:
The only thing I heard coming up was the American dream. “You could make it, if you pull yourself up by the bootstraps.” I heard that my entire life — until we started being successful. Then it was like, “You’re selling out because you’re making money.” People had this allure for the “struggling artist” – that’s a mind game, what we would call, back in the day, “tricknology”. I’m not going for that.
I make art first and then I make sure that I’m compensated for my art. I didn’t get here by taking advantage of people or taking advantage of the loopholes in the system, or some wrinkle in a capitalist structure. That structure exists; I just see the world for what it is, not for what I want it to be. I’m a realist. It’s not idealistic. People speak about the world how they want to see it. You’re never going to win like that.
I have to deal with the reality of the world, and I’m going to navigate this world, not only for me, but for a bunch of people that’s been disenfranchised by a system that doesn’t play fair for us. In order for us to progress forward, we have to deal with the world the way it is.
Sometimes that means going out and starting your own company. Sometimes that means partnering with established companies because that’s the world that we live in. [There’s] nowhere you’re going to go that Black people control distribution and control media. At some point, you’re going to have to partner with somebody.
On unlikely advice from Jon Bon Jovi:
This is the strangest thing, but you get advice from places that you just wouldn’t expect it. When I took the president job at Def Jam [in 2004], Jon Bon Jovi told me, “You’re an artist. Don’t forget you’re an artist.”
Yep, the Internet has turned people into a community of droids. I still bump Drake and Kendrick. They’re both dope in different veins
Not 100% more so the agencies and corporations that use the internet to manipulate and even before then used Hollywood and media
Sir Kendrick plays into it accusing Drake of such acts do it’s not the internet it’s him and Jay-Z pays off people in media to cover for him which is why they defend him at every turn but never defended others in the past like Bill Cosby, R.Kelly, Diddy, Michael Jackson or others. They even avoid talking about allegations against him if it’s too true. They covered up his connections to Harvey Weinstein ajd Jeffrey Epstein claiming he and others named don’t seem like the type, when we don’t know this man or any of these people personally.
Kendrick used artwork with luggage from Drake’s dad including his prescription meds also implying he had been monitoring him from his NYC location. He played into this it’s not the internet this was all his plan. He then sent his goons like Daylyt after Joey Badass never responding. SchoolboyQ even said it was real hate between Drake and Kendrick so he told Cole to back out. Let’s not pretend it was anything else. Add on the allegations and claims not to mention virtue signaling from Kendrick contradicting himself in songs with his actions then working with Playboi Carti also going on tour with him despite criticizing modern rap especially Drake. Slandering Drake and costing Drake deals like renegotiating a better contract or testing the waters for a better contract and accusing his label of similar crimes too. Meanwhile Carti and his guys all have crimes of what he accuses Drake of same with his mentor Dr Dre. One minute you want this to have impact the next it’s too much so you blame the internet, no he just can’t handle it and you people want to defend it. Does the music not carry weight and have no meaning then just blind virtue signalling? If so he should shut up. Then again his friends getting exposed trying to meet with kids.
You sound like a pay pig just consume no matter what. That’s who this interview is for just follow what they tell you to think and consume product. It contradicts what Kendrick does showing he’s controlled op like all conscious rappers signed to major labels but criticizing everything such as greed when they profit from their hypocritical messages acting holier than thou when they are just scumbags.
Complain about internet acting like your better than everyone else but use internet to comment and feel false sense of superiority. Yeah you’re really showing everyone.
This some good interview yk fair play to hova
No the guy is a awful person still waiting on 50’s doc on him
Massive lies he made money off it just doing damage control post Epstein list remember he and Pusha used to sleep in the same bed with Harvey Weinstein
It’s been well noted that Jay hates Drake also owns a percent of TDE. He selected Kendrick to perform that year just to dunk on Drake and let’s be honest Kendrick knows what he’s doing it’s not solely the people online.
Free Diddy and RKelky then lock this guy up. RocNation set up Tory Lanez and put Lil Uzi in the hospital before he signed to them. Jay pays the media off like crazy it’s been clear he pays off Charlamange and a ton of influencers online that make gossip pieces
Kendrick’s performance was dead until Not Like Us everyone knows that except KBots. Also it was on Tubi so they could bot adding fake high viewership. No way he beat Michael Jackson’s half time show. Then Bad Bunny somehow beat Kendrick’s and that one wasn’t on Tubi it was on Peacock the worst streaming service even weirder. Pusha got signed to RocNation because Jay and him used to get under cover with Weinstein. Jay is not protected anymore by Warren Buffet he’ll go down worse than Diddy. He got Big L killed and unlike others he has no talent he needs others to write for him, run businesses for him, and be creators for him like artists and producers. Dame made Jay’s career but he didn’t sell his soul like Jay did.
NBA YoungBoy had a great year even the NFL players want him but Jay picked Bad Bunny. Rihanna and the west coast 90’s rappers did not have big years he picked them. Lil Wayne should have been the one for NOLA not bendrick but we know why bendrick was picked and not Wayne.
No one buying tickets to his trash show🤣🤣🤣🤣
Have fun in jail Shawn. Puff, Robert, and Harvey waiting on you.
This is all PR to cover for him going to jail after all the proof against this sicko.
Jaguar Wright tells truth put this loser and his witch of a wife in jail all of RocNation raid that operation. All these fake hood dudes about to get exposed for being chicken heads. 90’s and 2000’s NY hiphop will not survive it.
Funny he ignores scamming his business partners on Tidal. He is lying he paid to get the case thrown out against the little girl the evidence is there even weirder he named his daughter after his ex-gf who does that? We going to forget Solange beat him up too or him being weird with Rihanna and Teairra Mari. Also avoid all the other claims made against him by 50 Cent, Dame, Ye, Nicki, Jaguar, and others against him. Also avoid him snubbing Lil Wayne but giving Dre a Super Bowl half time show despite no album out that year. He hates Drake and took him out because he knew the industry wants to set Drake up to replace him as rapper turned businessman. He’s also jealous of Lil Wayne and Ye
He killed Aaliyah, killed Big L, blacklisted Dame and DMX, got Tory Lanez locked up and tried to get him killed, then sent Lil Uzi to the hospital and at this point he probably set up Diddy. He probably set up Drake too orchestrating Kendrick dissing Drake since he hates Drake and Wayne but likes Dre so work with him and his protege. Then paid to get Beyoncé a Grammy for country. He for sure did that with that girl the case was never proven false he paid off people and the Epstein files showed he and Pusha T did the same things with Harvey Weinstein. Probably why he signed him and probably why Pusha dissed Drake. Look his Yankee stadium show not selling out and he’s faking the wait list numbers now the tickets being sold 25% off. Then taking the Super Bowl from Wayne and canceling Ye.
He not beating the multiple allegations.
Surviving Jay-Z
Bet he been diddled by you know who
Currently he’s defending billionaires. Whos side is this clown on but himself just manipulating old people again. Go defend the billionaires
Black people being stupid as usual. The US was over 90% white in the 50’s meaning slavery was not as big as claimed. Africa is mostly not black. Blacks are not the majority and have no culture. They remain being slaves for certain people.
Gypsy won and blacks can’t handle that. They proved him right. Soon the muslims will take over and slavery will be back no rights for women or blacks. With the zionists gone forever. Utopia is coming.
Hopefully Dave Blunts disses him next. RocNation is disgusting hope the feds take him and horse face. #FreeTory
Bro paying everyone to cover up he’s in the epstein files being freakier than Puff. Puff was whipped by Cassie, Jigga which is a gay name was with other men.
PR spin now the RocNation bots will come in same way the media defends him because he pays them.
Doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters is that Drake is gay.
🫵R🅰️🏠🅾️
The Jiggaler.
Young Thug and Future the ones that run hip hop not this plant! People fail to realize the rappers from the 90’s and 2000’s was plants like this one, Tupac, Eminem, all them
Ninja my song on replay
So a homo and a deadbeat dad/drug addict are who’s running hip hop now. No wonder everyone says hip hop is dead and gay.
Young Thug and Playboi Carti should have won Grammys but this chimpanzee face took that away to give it to butdrick
Looks like your dad let you out of the basement again. You better get back there before he busts out the whip again.
Gay Z was a plant old people need to realize he has no talent and was overrated. How could you think he was a good rapper? Him, 50, Eminem, Tupac, these guys sounded horrible. They were overrated.
Gay Z can’t explain shit other people ran his business for him, write his songs for him, designed clothes for him, and produced songs for him. Ye better, Wayne better, Slime better, Top better, Pluto better, Smurk better, Sosa better, Uzi better, Kodak better, Baby better, all of them better. This dude set up TDE forcing ghat trash on us doechii and his other artist megalodon
Bunch of gay dudes ranting about shit they know nothing about. Obsessed with Jay Z, Kendrick, and all the others because they’re rich and straight and you’re not.
🧻4️⃣U😭
Jay z does what makes him happy so i guess the fans don’t
He is so full of it and hqs gotten dumber in his old age doing this. The public wasn’t the issue he and Kendrick knew what they were doing. Future, Ross, and Metro all apologized to Drake. Jay jealous of everyone Ye, Lil Wayne, and Drake. When UMG loses that case they’ll see, it got appealed but KBots and RocNation drones spin narratives.
Reminder he lost his battle to Nas. That’s why he and Cole act like this. If Nas wasn’t so controlled now he should diss Jay again. In his age he won’t. If it wasn’t for Diddy and Warren Buffett taking in Jay he’d have no career now also Ye making his songs.
Curious what Eminem would say because he can’t talk bad about Jay Z and loves both Kendrick and Drake. But Em is a battle rapper.
I don’t like how Diddy got set up but this one and Dre are free. Why doesn’t he speak on that, Puff was his brother after all.