Kendrick Lamar‘s fan base is known for being extremely loyal, and they have now proven that they’re just as attentive.
Soon after K.Dot released his “euphoria” diss track aimed at Drake on Tuesday (April 30), his followers began dissecting the six-and-a-half minute joint in search of easter eggs.
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Whereas this has yet to be verified, many have pointed out that the YouTube link for the track in question was posted to X (formerly Twitter) at exactly 8:24 PM PST. The numbers on each side of the timestamp’s colon were jersey numbers worn by late NBA legend Kobe Bryant, an athlete whose drive and presence has often been compared to that of the Compton rapper.
Most notably, both titans sat down with Complex back in 2017 to discuss their respective crafts. Over the chat, the Lakers guard was asked is there’s a basketball player the rapper reminds him of.
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“Yeah, it was me!” he said, without missing a beat. “It’s the same hunger — you step out there on the court, we’re taking heads off […] I don’t wanna hear Michael [Jordan’s] the best player in the world. I don’t wanna hear they call him Black Jesus.”
Watch the 18-time All-Star talk about his Hip Hop counterpart at the 9:51 mark below:
A little over four years after the above interview, Kung-Fu Kenny released “The Heart Part 5” to stir up anticipation for his upcoming album, Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers. With Kobe having passed away not long before, the Los Angles MC used a deepfake of Black Mamba over his own face in the music video as he rapped: “Euphoria is glorified and made his.”
Considering he leaned into this basketball-rap comparison, many believed that Drizzy was throwing shade at his peer when he rapped “That’s how you gon’ find out you not Kobe Bryant to us/ Man, you not Kobe Bryant to us, at all” on “Stories About My Brother” from 2023’s For All The Dogs: Scary Hours Edition.
Just a little over a month after Metro Boomin, Future and Kendrick’s “Like That” set in motion one of the most high-profile feuds in recent years, the former TDE star released “euphoria” in response to his rival’s “Push Ups” and “Taylor Made Freestyle” rebuttals.
After a mellow, dreamy intro in which the 36-year-old refers to his adversary as a “pathetic master manipulator” who is “paranoid,” “spiraling” and “fabricating stories on the family front,” the scathing cut kicks into life with a sudden beat switch.
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From there, the Pulitzer Prize winner throws jab after jab at the 6 God and even accuses him of sending a cease and desist letter in an attempt to have “Like That” taken down.
Check out a detailed break down of every notable bar on the track here.
