Vybz Kartel claims Drake is a “better and bigger artist” than Kendrick Lamar
Drake and Kendrick Lamar’s beef dominated the hip-hop industry last year, but Vybz Kartel believes there’s only one winner when it comes to the two of them. The Jamaican artist, who dubs himself the “King of Dancehall,” was released from prison in August after serving over a decade behind bars.
During a recent interview, Kartel was asked to provide his take on how Drake handled his beef with K.Dot, to which he claimed he dislikes Kendrick’s music. Part of his reasoning was due to Drizzy embracing Jamaica in his music.
“I’m not a fan of Kendrick,” he told Billboard. “I don’t even listen to Kendrick, so I wouldn’t know. What does he rap? I saw it on the internet, but no disrespect to the dude, I hear him, but I don’t listen to him. Drake is more in tune with Jamaica and the culture. Drake is a better and bigger artist.”
Kendrick and Drizzy went back and forth with diss tracks in 2024, with Drake dropping ‘Push Ups’, ‘Taylor Made Freestyle’, ‘Family Matters’, ‘Buried Alive Interlude, Pt. 2’ and ‘The Heart Part 6’. On the opposite side, Kendrick dealt his blows with ‘Like That’, ‘Euphoria’ ‘6:16 in LA’, ‘Meet the Grahams’, ‘Not Like Us’ and ‘Watch the Party Die’.
Not only does Kartel have Drake’s back, but the pair reportedly have a collaboration on the way. “Vybz Kartel confirms that he has new music on the way with Drake,” Complex recently reported.
Speaking to Nardwuar in 2016, Drake was full of praise for Kartel, citing him as an influence on his music. “Vybz Kartel is one of my biggest inspirations—like, one of my favourite artists,” he said. “You want to talk about a guy that is coming out of a place that has their own thing, their own culture and absolutely just taking over to becoming the one person to idolise.”
Kartel was sentenced to life in prison in 2014 for the murder of Clive ‘Lizard’ Williams. However, his conviction was quashed due to juror misconduct, with the Jamaican Court of Appeal forced to decide if a retrial would occur. In the end, he was freed after the country’s highest superior court decided against retrying the case.