Kendrick Lamar and Drake‘s sizzling beef may have gripped the Hip Hop nation, but Questlove is far from impressed.
The Roots drummer sternly criticized the hotly-contested rap battle in an Instagram post on Tuesday (May 7), going as far as to declare Hip Hop “truly dead.”
Quest’s issues lie with the way both rappers have conducted themselves, dragging each other’s family members into the feud and making scandalous yet unsubstantiated allegations on their respective diss songs.
“Nobody won the war,” he wrote. “This wasn’t about skill. This was a wrestling match level mudslinging and takedown by any means necessary — women & children (& actual facts) be damned.
“Same audience wanting blood will soon put up ‘rip’ posts like they weren’t part of the problem. Hip Hop truly is dead.”
Challenging both Kendrick and Drake to step their game up, morally speaking, Questlove added in the caption: “Here We Are Now…Entertain us?”
Kendrick Lamar and Drake are both guilty of “mudslinging” in the feud. On “Family Matters,” the 6 God suggested one of K. Dot’s children might actually belong to his longtime manager and pgLang partner Dave Free, and even accused the Pulitzer Prize winner of beating his fiancée Whitney Alford.
Kendrick, meanwhile, has accused Drake of being a sex predator who preys on underage girls, keeps the company of fellow pedophiles and leads a hedonistic lifestyle filled with drink, drugs, gambling and prostitution.
He also penned verses to Drizzy’s family members, including his six-year-old son Adonis, on “Meet the Grahams” while claiming he secretly has an 11-year-old daughter who he neglects.
Questlove’s criticism echoes that of Charlamagne Tha God, who has also taken issue with some of Kendrick and Drake’s lyrical jabs.
Speaking on The Breakfast Club earlier this week, the radio host said: “I don’t like seeing these brothers Me Too-ing each other over a rap feud. To me, that’s corny. If you’re going to call somebody a pedophile, if you’re going to call someone a woman beater, you got to have some real proof.
“You’re going to accuse my friend and my girl of having a baby, and me thinking that that child is mine — those are some heavy accusations.”
He added: “It’s not like they’re trying to hold each other accountable; they’re just throwing these types of accusations around to attempt to ruin the image of the other, and that’s whack to me. Other than that, it’s been great.”
Charlamagne did, however, praise it as “the best rap battle I’ve ever witnessed” and declared Kendrick the winner so far — an opinion shared by many in Hip Hop.
100%.
Cool story, Bro. When that new Roots album coming out though?
Yep. Finally an OG with some sense. Both of these dudes aren’t top 50 rappers of all time, and nothing about this bullshit is going to change it. Just making those white folks more money at the top while they laugh at you.
These fucking conscious rappers dont know a rap battle from the hole in their ass. This is what the fans want. Let the teo cornballs duke it out on wax and be happy this beff doesnt involve any rral gangsters. Its comedy and thats what the fans want.
If kendrick legit disagrees with what he thinks Drake is about and thinks it’s harmful for hip hop and the wider public, why not try and change public opinion of him? I’m not saying his approach was infallable and it would be better to lead with facts, but it doesnt feel like kendrick is just doing it for entertainment or for himself. I feel hip hop would benefit from more people getting called out on behaviour that isnt about or goes against community, particularly as hip hop is supposed to be about community.
The problem is that this isn’t a Drake problem. It’s an industry problem, and it started when our genre was sold down the river like every other one before it. It’s also a consumer problem because people shifted from wanting messages in their music to wanting to shake their ass, which I’d say started with Bad Boy in the 90s taking over the game. Kendrick also needs to be consistent because he does a lot of songs with people on the same wave as Drake. If you’re against it, be a hundred percent against it. Like Saba, I’ve never heard on a Future or Kodak Black collaboration, and I’m guessing I never will or at least I hope I never will.
So hip-hop wasn’t dead when he added Sexyy Red to his festival?
Questlove is a big dork
He’s a cornball for sure
It was about skills when Kendrick dropped Like That. Then Drake chatty patty ass brought it there. Dude has been a cancer on hip hop.
Told y’all it felt like people were using trigger topics to get the other canceled instead of battling lol esp Kendrick clowns
With all due respect, fuck Quest opinion. This is a rap battle, a war. Biggie/Pac to Jay/Nas to 50/Ja, there’s always been over the line shit and family mentioned. I hate these takes because it basically reduces the impact of what Kendrick accomplished, in winning the rap battle
The battle between both is great. The wife beating and pedo allegations I don’t like. But the fans and media having this celebration of trying to end Drakes career just goes to show you how deep jealousy runs when you’re that successful. Drake music isn’t for everyone, the same can be said for Kendrick, Eminem, Jay, Pac and etc. If you like it you consume it, if you don’t that’s fine.
This peace and love bullshit that quest tries to project is exactly why he will never sell as much as most other rappers.
Turn on the comments on Instagram.
Shut up Quest, respectfully.
“Questlove, shut yo h0e a$$ up and beat some drums”
Lol! Good one!
questlove a brilliant drummer but corny. keep in mind questlove backs Jay zee whenever he calls. was hip hop dead when Jay Zee threw condoms in a baby seat and brought in baby mothers into a rap beef out of desperation? nobody ever needs questloves commentary he stay hype over celebrities…was hip hop dead when he rather hosts tea parties for white women than make a Roots album
Here we are now… entertain us
That’s Kurt Cobain smells like teen spirit
So everyone who says sense is to be attacked. Dummies in here too brainless to critique a situation. The only thing u can afford is curse words, nothing beyond that, too lazy to think.
90 percent of the garbage posted on this absolute joke of a website is about fruitcake Drake. LIKE LITERALLY 90 PERCENT! To the entire non-credible, fraudulent, embarrassing, laughable, corny, cringy, retarded DuncecapD/X SHIT STAFF: YOU SUPER SLOW SH0RT BUS RIDERS HAVE ALREADY REACHED YOUR OVER RATED AF FRUIT CAKE DRAKE AND KENDRICK LAMER/COLE/FUTURE DISS QUOTA FOR THE MONTH LIKE 193 ARTICLES AGO. STUCK ON STUPID AZZ MFERS GET DRAKE’S BUTT HOLE OUT OF YOUR MOUTHS AND GO GET REAL JOBS WHERE YOU CAN ACTUALLY MAKE SOME REAL MONEY AND NOT LAUGHED AT BY EVERYONE EVERY SINGLE DAY THE WAY YOU DICKHEADS DO NOW. THIS WHOLE RE T@RDED TR@SH STAFF ARE THE POSTER LOSERS FOR WHAT N0T TO BE IN LIFE.
Wuestlove shut your bhati boy ass up u fairy u ain’t hip hop u the drummer for roots u fat sissy facts no Kizzy
Questlove would be working for UPS if it wasn’t for Black Thought.
The people in the comments must be young or ignorant. Common was saying it back in 1994 on his track I Use to Love Her. See little kids back in the OG rap era of the 80s hip hop was about having fun, making a good rhythm, and when it came to rap battles who is the better rapper. Ever since gangsta rap started blowing up hip hop started turning down a bad path more and more to now it’s degrading. Hip hop sold its soul and it never healed itself. All Kendrick and Drake were doing was degrading each other for a one up and it’s nothing great. If y’all don’t get that then you don’t know hip hop