Hip-hop feuds are no latest news, but one of the most recent headlines blowing up the internet has to do with Drake and Rick Ross, and it just won’t quiet down. The former loyal collaborators have churned out enough songs for them to be collectively clubbed together as an entire album of music. However, the bad blood between them has severed a once-iconic longtime professional partnership.
Here’s what happened and how this new inflated hip-hop beef lost all rhyme and reason:
Drake-Rick Ross beef explained
1. Drake releases diss track Push Ups
On Saturday, April 13, the Toronto rapper released a new tune, addressing every rivalry possible. The song samples Mike Jones’ Drop & Gimme 50 and was leaked online before DJ Whoo Kid officially released it.
In the nearly 4-minute-long track, Drizzy takes shots at Kendrick Lamar, Metro Boomin’, Future, J Cole, Rick Ross, The Weeknd and Ja Morant. This tune seems to have come out as a follow-up response to Metro Boomin’ and Future’s latest album, We Still Don’t Trust You, which featured all of Drake’s rivals in the industry.
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Kendrick Lamar especially shot back at him and J Cole in the fiery track Like That. On top of that, the 25-piece album also featured guest appearances of J Cole, A$AP Rocky, The Weeknd and others.
Singling out his Rick Ross diss, Drake fired shots at him with the verse: “I might take your latest girl and cuff her like I’m Ricky / Can’t believe he jumpin’ in, this n***a turnin’ fifty / Every song that made it on the chart, he got from Drizzy / Spend that lil’ check you got and stay up out my business.”
2. Rick Ross’ heavy response to Drake with an ensuing diss track Champagne Moments
Within hours of Drake’s track surfacing online, Rick Ross’ heavy-handed response followed in the shape of another diss track, Champagne Moments. Taking a dig at Drake’s biracial ethnicity, Ross called Drake a “White Boy” in his song.
He added, “N***as leakin’ they records when we speakin’ directly.”
Ross even addressed the supposed origins of their fallout, which came into focus last month when Rick unfollowed Drake on social media.
“I unfollowed you because you sent the cease and desist to French Montana, n***a,” said Ross. “You sent the police, n***a, hated on my dog’s project, n***a, that wasn’t the same white boy I seen, n***, when we was making them early records,” concluded Ross.
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Media reports suggest that their feud blew up into shape as Drake invited Ross’ ex-girlfriend, Cristina Mackey, to his Miami Biggest The What tour in March. Per Drake’s latest diss verse against Ross, he again focussed on these “women problems.” Moreover, Ross’ ex-fiancee, Lira Galore, was previously romantically entangled with Meek Mill, who also shared a rivalry with Drake, only for them to resolve it later and make way for a friendship based on “honesty.”
3. Drake-Rick Ross indirect heated online exchange
Pushing his side of the narrative into focus, Drake eventually took to Instagram to share a screenshot of a text exchange with his mother. As the heated diss war blew up on the internet, Drake’s mother picked up the alleged claims (made by Rick on his track) that Drake had gotten a nose job.
While responding to his mother, he laughed off these allegations and addressed the person responsible for fuelling these claims. Reminding her of the “guy [he] did songs with,” Drake even labelled Rick a racist.
Instead of letting the beef die down, Ross also hopped on his socials. In his recent Instagram story, the Champagne Moments rapper branded Drake “BBL Drizzy” and scoffed at him for having “called his mommy on [him].” Again referring to the Hotline Bling hitmaker as “White Boy,” Ross condescendingly tells him that his “mama” can’t get him out of these troubles.
It’s suffice to say that fans who dearly loved the duo’s history of hard-hitting collaborations may now bid goodbye to any hopes of their new shared projects.