RZA has claimed that Drake made a mistake in trying to go bar-for-bar with Kendrick Lamar in their rap battle.
Wu-Tang Clan legend shared his thoughts on the high-profile beef in an interview with Complex and questioned Drizzy’s decision-making.
“First of all, Kendrick is the natural lyricist, and Drake is a trained lyricist. You could train a fighter and he could be good, then you got those natural fighters who also then go through training,” he said. “So that’s a different chamber there. And while Drake got bars forever, Kendrick’s bars’ potency was stronger.
“So the battle bar-for-bar was something that was just not good advising on Drake’s camp in the sense of just getting in that fight without really taking some more training for that. When Kendrick wrote the letter to his son or his daughter and to his [mother], Kendrick is going to come like that. Nas, Kendrick, Eminem, Raekwon, certain people are going to break your shit down to the element.”
He continued: “But in doing so, I do think that a lot was said, and Drake is a powerful artist in our culture. He helped the culture when the culture needed it. He expanded it with his melodies and he raised a generation too, and you can’t take that away from him.”
RZA also said he hopes that the former collaborators can eventually make peace: “It took years for [Nas and JAY-Z] to swallow that pill and then come and shake hands on it. So hopefully it is not the same. Hopefully this generation can take it as fun like how the beginning generation took it more for fun.
“Hopefully as they mature more as humans, they would go, ‘Wow, that shit was crazy. That shit was fun. I ate you up, son. You know what I mean? But yo, I love that other joint. My son love your joint. My son love your joint.’ And here we are for the culture coming together.”
Fellow New York rap legend 50 Cent also recently reflected on the feud, but argued that Drake did not come off second best, contrary to popular opinion.
Speaking to Billboard, Fif recalled the pep talk he gave the 6 God following his perceived defeat: “I was telling him, it’s not him. I’m listening on the outskirts, it’s not you. Don’t let yourself think that for a second.
“On some real shit, I said, ‘They said you lost, okay. Well what did you lose?’ What exactly did he lose if he got $300 something million on his last tour? You didn’t lose a motherfucking thing, man.”
The G-Unit mogul also revealed he urged Drake to stay in the studio — advice he appears to have heeded considering he has released a slew of solo material and guest features since the beef cooled off in May, and also has a joint album with PARTYNEXTDOOR on the way.
“If that’s the moment, you keep your creative energy in the right place, and keep creating,” he recalled telling Drizzy. “If you slow down because you feel, ‘What the fuck?’ The resistance will make you feel like your material isn’t good.
“Then you gotta figure out how to keep pushing, how to keep creating — because that’s what it feels like to you at the moment. That shit was good for Hip Hop. It made both of them create quality material faster.”
As for those upset at him taking Drake’s side, 50 said: “[People] look and go, ‘Ahh, I’m automatically supposed to be on Kendrick’s side because of my association with [Dr.] Dre.’ And I love Kendrick, but I’ll say it to you: I didn’t see where what [Drake] did was wack at any point.
“They giving [Drake] the, ‘Oh you wack, you finished.’ I’m like, ‘Nah, come on.’ That’s the system trying to make some sort of resistance and it’s from the consistency.”
Drake is gay
You still mad drake fucked your mother but wouldn’t give you any dick?
there’s no honor waiting for these people. it’s over. just watch
Hip hop people always acting like this shit is some high level music are funny to me. These people are barely literate. I love the genre, but let’s keep it real. Case in point, Meet the Grahams was probably my favorite of the disses, but until Kendrick put out that terrible ABC shit on that wack ass Mustard beat, people were giving it to Drake. So at the end of the day, people just wanted to head nod and get their jokes off on Drake. Nothing intricate about it.
And what exactly makes hip hop less exceptional or “high level” than jazz, blues, rock and roll, and country, all of which were originally sociopolitical movements rooted in revolt? Literacy does not necessarily dictate raw intelligence, especially in cultures where it’s not necessary for survival. Also, there are multiple kinds of intelligence. “Everyone is a genius, but if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing it’s stupid.”
Have you ever read hip hop lyrics? I mean without the beat. They play no instruments. It’s just people putting together rhymes that would get you laughed out of a literature class. again, I love the genre because the best of it sounds good because of the rapper’s delivery, but it’s not some shit based out of high level thinking or any special talent, which is why the genre is where it is right now with so many terrible rappers and no output from other genres to piggyback their sound off of. I mean we have to be honest about what we’re listening to. I could download Frooty Loops and make a beat and come up with a rap that if you didn’t know me would get your head nodding.
Why do you think they call it street poetry? It’s because a lot of those lyrics are in fact poetry. There’s a ton of bullshit out there too, but that doesn’t undermine an entire genre of music and you can also say that about every other genre. Must respectfully disagree with everything you just said here. If you could make music like that, you’d be out here getting money and not making sweeping generalizations about an entire musical genre which as of now is the most popular in the entire world. To say that hip hop is fundamentally ignorant or less artistically or musically viable than blues, jazz, rock and roll, or country is ignorant in and of itself. Music is subjective yes. But poetry is poetry. Kool G Rap may have been a gangster/pimp and he may not be the best elementary school teacher, but he’s a poet, just like BIG, NaS, Phife, Bizzy, Big L, Pun, KRS, etc etc etc.
*Also the voice can indisputably easily be argued to be an instrument on its own so your whole conceit that hip hop wouldn’t be musical or meaningful without a beat is just again another sweeping generalized blanket statement that holds no logical or reasonable weight whatsoever. And again it’s extremely ignorant and also an extremely tired cliche that every old cognitive dissonanced generation before you spouted ever since hip hop was birthed in the first place.
Well the thing was there was barely any time between disses. I mean the whole meat of the battle took place in like a week
I beg to differ you could make a rap song to get my head nodding I bet you could make garbage dance but that’s about it
Thank you! Sad a lot of the people that visit this site and comment are just colonizers/haters/tourists. It’s to be expected. But some of them like this guy are so confidently stupid, it’s painful.
The voice can be said to be an instrument. Sounds like something dummies tell themselves to cope with that they’re not doing anything special. You a homo? You get turned on by men’s voices now? Not to mention that the studio doesn’t even deliver you their real voices often times. A lot of rappers, you’d be shocked by how different their rap voice is from their real voice, but I’ll let you figure that out too.
Colonizer who is undoubtedly way darker skinned than you and who has been listening to hip hop since 1982, lol. I’m pretty sure I’ve forgotten more about it than you’ll ever know. Somebody learned a new word from a rapper and wants to use it. Well, let me give you some advice, use that with those white boys you talk with and not a real hip hop head because if you approach me that way again, I’m going to embarrass you.
Take half those people off that list. I’ll give you Nas, Phife, and KRS are street poets, but that’s the problem. You people swear anybody rhyming words is a street poet. Nah, and that’s the issue. The vast majority of the genre is just some ignorant shit on wax. That’s how they make it. Even the dudes named above resorted to it from time to time to sell some records, and when your whole genre is based on ignorant shit is the only way to viability for 99% who make it, you have to call a spade a spade.
We have to stop meeting like this in public. No real “hip hop head” says what you just said. It’s ok to admit when you’re wrong and don’t have a clue what you’re talking about especially when it pertains to your own life and perceived identity.
@Silent Partner. Nah, I’ll keep that list. There’s a reason you are a self-titled silent partner. You have nothing to say. Talk some shit about Sean Price too and tell me he’s not a poet either, while we’re at it mister hip hop expert who is a closeted hip hop hater. Talking about shades of skin color made you lose every shred of credibility you thought you had. You are a clown.
@Silent-Partner…Prodigy was a poet too. I know it bothers you to hear that because you are biased, bigoted, self-hating and square, but it’s true. You are being so defensive so late also at some level you know you are dead wrong and just patently ignorant.
I’d never meet with you in public. I have better things to do. A person who has watched the whole evolution of this shit would say exactly what I said. Hell, even rappers who have given it up and don’t make a living off it anymore have said as much, but I’ll let you think you’re listening to the Lost Chronicles or some shit to live your life by. Meanwhile, the most memorable hip hop songs are mostly ignorant shit on wax.
@Nah,
You’re the dumb fuck who called me a colonizer, so I was just setting your bitch ass straight on who I am. Watch who you use those slick lines you learned from your favorite rapper to.
Nah. You are just dumb or trolling, and you really don’t deserve anymore words. Don’t know wtf you are even talking about meeting with me in public. Your bitch ass would have been chased out of any borough in NY in the 90’s had you had the balls to say this shit out loud with a 3D audience which I’d bet you don’t. Times are soft now so you get a pass. Doesn’t detract from the fact that you are majorly deluded and lost.
@Silent Partner. You are the king of slow comebacks, and it’s funny you wanna criticize others about literacy when you’re clearly illiterate. You couldn’t set a hose straight.
@Nah,
I chilled in the Bronx and Brooklyn with my homies in the mid 90s. I was just fine. As far as the meet in public response, that wasn’t meant for you. Some other bitch directed that at me. I guess you wanted to speak up for him. Nobody is trolling, so you might want to stop getting offended that I just pointed out that hip hop isn’t some high level genre of music. Rhyming bitch and snitch together isn’t anything profound.
@Aha,
I loved Prodigy. However, his most memorable songs are about some ignorant shit on wax. Tell me about the deep cuts on Albert Anastasia, but the shit he’ll be remembered for 50 years from now are ignorant ass songs that he and Havoc did. So you’re making my point. Also, I love Sean Price for the other dude who brought him up, and you’re proving my point too. When did Sean Price get his props when alive? Barely did. As I said, I love this genre, but ignorance is what’s celebrated. Street poets are not celebrated, so don’t talk to me about how it’s some high level genre of music when 99% of the stars, even the legit talented ones, are celebrated for ignorant shit instead of actual poetry over beats.
No one that genuinely loves this genre thinks that is less valuable or more ignorant than any other genre of music, You are a poser. Accept it and move on. Your homies were either cowards or they took pity on you because they thought you were slow if you talked that shallow myopic shit back then which I’d bet you didn’t. It’s ok. You aren’t who you think you are. No big deal. Just because you have no knowledge of self doesn’t mean you aren’t human. You are forgiven for your ignorance.
*cowards or fools
Drake is gay
I actually think Drake won. But maybe that’s because I am light skinned.
And gay
I grew up listening to the OG’s. Guys like Diddy, Lil Bow Wow, Ja Rule, etc, etc. They made me the man that I am today. If there’s no lyricism, I don’t fux with them. I have to school some of you youngens on here I see
Be a hoe on the internet and grab somebody’s name for clicks. I listen to wack rappers but have saved my harshest criticisms for them over the years. All right little buddy. Better clean up before Mom gets home. She has to clean up too after I got done with her, so you got time.
Calm down fella, before you catch a heart attack .. and mother jokes? What a dork 😂