Jay-Z and Drake are widely considered to be two of the most influential figures in hip-hop right now. The pair know what it feels like to hit the charts on a regular basis and understand how it feels to be able to pack out arenas around the world with ease. Jay-Z is from a different era to Drake. He is also from a very different place.
Jay-Z is from the inner city of New York City and grew up around hip-hop in the centre of the culture and was raised around some of the culture’s legends, including Big Daddy Kane, Biggie Smalls and Busta Rhymes. On the other hand, Drake was raised in the suburbs of Toronto and grew to love the culture from afar.
Jay-Z (real name Shawn Carter) has never openly had a feud with anyone aside from Dame Dash and Nas. Drake, on the other hand, despite being a star, is still perceived as a popstar not capable of battling. As such, he has been involved in multiple beefs and is in one with Kendrick Lamar currently.
However, Jay-Z may have been the first person to diss Drake in 2017. That year, Carter and his wife Beyonce appeared on DJ Khaled’s track, ‘Shining’. It was the first time Beyonce and Jay had featured on the same track since 2013’s ‘Drunk In Love’.
After hearing Jay-Z’s verse, many fans speculated if he was taking shots at Drake. The verse in question heard the Brooklyn native rap, “I know you ain’t out here talkin’ numbers, right? / I know you ain’t out here talkin’ summers, right? / I know you ain’t walkin’ ’round talkin’ down / Sayin’ boss shit when you a runner, right?”
A year before ‘Shining’, Drake released ‘Summer Sixteen’ which had a lyric that insinuated he was better than Jay-Z and even Kanye West. On the track, he raps, “I used to wanna be on Roc-a-Fella, then I turned into Jay / Now I got a house in LA, Now I got a bigger pool than Ye.”
Although Jay-Z may have been the first person to address Drake, nobody, including Drake, would even consider going into a lyrical battle with Jay-Z as he has such respect and power in the culture.
As for now, Drake is waiting for a response from Kendrick Lamar from the two diss tracks he has released, ‘Push Ups (Drop & Give Me Fifty)’ and ‘Taylor Made Freestyle’ which hears A.I. versions of 2Pac and Snoop Dogg rapping lyrics directed at Kendrick.
You can hear Jay-Z and Drake’s subliminal exchanges in the videos below.
