Drake‘s new album with PARTYNEXTDOOR, $ome $exy $ongs 4 U, is here — and it finds him addressing a few of his enemies including Kendrick Lamar and Joe Budden.
Though he doesn’t mention Kendrick by name, the 6 God alludes to his bitter feud with the Compton rapper — which also saw the likes of Rick Ross, Metro Boomin and The Weeknd go against him — on “Gimme a Hug,” a snippet of which leaked earlier this year.
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In his defiant opening verse, Drake raps: “Drake elimination, fake intimidation / Take a minute, take a deep breath, have a little bit of patience / ‘Drizzy, you amazing, you the inspiration / You set the bar for the next generation / You Neo in The Matrix, these n-ggas just Nemo in the ocean / Small fish, making kids feel emotion / Using you for promotion,’ truer words have never been spoken.
“N-ggas want to see ‘RIP me’ on a t-shirt like I’m Hulk Hogan / I appreciate the fans rocking with me, this is really just a small token / Really fucking with a visionary / Only reason I ain’t got a girl and I ain’t getting marriеd / ‘Cause I’m really out herе, filling up the itinerary ’til I’m six feet in a cemetery.
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“Bulletproof doors so heavy, got me rolling ’round like a dignitary / Funny how it’s only bitch n-ggas that are waiting on The Boy’s obituary / ‘Cause if I die, it’s these n-ggas that become the sole beneficiary / And what the fuck are they gon’ do with it? / Have the girls up at 29 on stage twerking with a dictionary?”
The latter bar feels particularly aimed at Kendrick given his reputation for verbose rhymes. It may also be a reference to the cover art of Lamar’s “Euphoria” diss song which is a screenshot of an online dictionary.
After a bouncy beat switch, the Toronto native downplays rap beef altogether by spitting: “They be dropping shit, but we be dropping harder shit / Fuck a rap beef, I’m tryna get the party lit / Tryna get the party lit for the bitches / Them Nike tights is hugging on that ass like they missed it.”
“Gimme a Hug,” which features a second beat switch that samples Aaron Hall’s 1993 R&B hit “I Miss You,” also hears Drizzy aiming a jab at longtime rival Joe Budden.
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“Melyssa Ford, you a legend from the 6, hate to see you with a dick-sucker,” he raps, referencing the former video vixen who co-hosts The Joe Budden Podcast.
Elsewhere, “Brian Steel” — which is named after the lawyer who represented Young Thug in his RICO trial and negotiated his release from jail — sees Drake responding to the YSL rapper’s plea for him, Future and Metro Boomin to bury the hatchet.
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“Broski just hit me, said, ‘Put all the beef on the side,’ I can’t / Mm-hmm, I’m heated now, yeah / N-ggas want meet up, talk about shit, I’m vegan now / Evil eyes were staring at me and I see it now,” he raps.
Shortly before he regained his freedom last October, Thug posted on X (formerly Twitter): “@Drake @1future @MetroBoomin we all bruddas. Music aint the same without us collabin.”
Pluto appeared to be on board with the truce as he reshared the post, although Metro has yet to publicly address it.
Released right on time for Valentine’s Day, $ome $exy $ongs 4 U clocks in at 21 songs and features appearances from Yebba, Chino Pacas and rising Houston singer Pim.
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Interestingly, the album was released through Universal Music Group, as well as other labels such as OVO Sound, Republic and Santa Anna, despite Drake’s defamation lawsuit against the music giant.
$ome $exy $ongs 4 U is Drake and PARTYNEXTDOOR’s first album together following a long-running working relationship that has produced tracks like “Recognize,” “Over Here” and “Come and See Me.”
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It also serves as Drizzy’s first full-length offering since his long-simmering rivalry with Kendrick Lamar boiled over last year — a battle he was largely deemed to have lost.
