In the contemporary world of hip-hop and rap, Drake, the Canadian rapper and global music icon, has enjoyed remarkable success, dominating charts and earning numerous accolades.
However, despite his immense popularity and influence, Drake has found himself embroiled in a growing number of public feuds and controversies with some of the biggest names in the industry.
His personal and professional relationships with fellow artists like Future, Metro Boomin, Kendrick Lamar, and The Weeknd have been marked by tension and hostility, leading many to wonder why such a successful figure is the target of so much animosity.
Understanding the underlying reasons behind these feuds requires an exploration of both the personal and professional dynamics between Drake and these artists, including issues of loyalty, competition, creative differences, and personal grievances.
Drake’s relationship with Future, one of his closest collaborators in the past, has taken a significant turn for the worse in recent years.
Their bond, once strong, has been tested by multiple public disputes. One of the key turning points came in 2022, when Drake was notably excluded from Metro Boomin’s Heroes & Villains album, despite his public interest in participating.
Metro Boomin, a celebrated producer and artist in his own right, has had a longstanding connection with both Drake and Future.
However, the exclusion of Drake from Metro’s project created an underlying sense of tension.
This was compounded when Her Loss, the album by Drake and 21 Savage, won major awards, overshadowing Metro Boomin’s Heroes & Villains. Drake’s success on this album, coupled with Future’s involvement in the project, led to further estrangement.
In addition to this, Future, who had worked with Drake on multiple hits and collaborative albums, began to take subtle jabs at him in his own music.
Some of the disses were direct, while others were more cryptic, leaving fans and critics alike to speculate about the true nature of the fallout.
These tensions were not just rooted in music, but also in personal dynamics. Despite rumors circulating that the beef between the two was related to women, with some suggesting that both artists were involved with the same women at various points, Metro Boomin later dismissed this idea as nothing more than speculation.
The real issue, it seems, was rooted in feelings of betrayal and a sense of competition. Metro’s growing discontent with Drake, paired with Future’s loyalty to Metro, led to a deeper divide between the former collaborators.
Future’s two albums that followed contained thinly veiled disses toward Drake, signaling that the rift between them had grown more pronounced.
Meanwhile, Kendrick Lamar, another heavyweight in the rap world, has had a long-running rivalry with Drake that dates back to 2013.
The animosity between the two began after Kendrick’s infamous verse on Big Sean’s song Control, in which he called out several of his peers, including Drake, by name.
The verse, which was meant to be a challenge and a call for healthy competition within the rap game, was not well-received by Drake.
Though Kendrick framed the verse as a way to inspire other rappers to step up their game, Drake took offense, feeling personally attacked by Kendrick’s decision to call him out.
From that moment on, the rivalry between the two began to simmer, with each artist taking subtle shots at the other over the years. The tension between them escalated when Kendrick released his To Pimp a Butterfly album, which many saw as a direct challenge to Drake’s dominance in the rap industry at the time.
Over the years, the feud between Kendrick and Drake has played out through various subliminal disses in their music. Kendrick’s Control verse was just the beginning.
Drake, not one to back down from a challenge, responded with his own jabs on tracks like The Ride and The Language. These back-and-forth exchanges highlighted the competitive nature of their rivalry and fueled speculation about their ongoing beef.
But it wasn’t until recently, when Kendrick released Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers in 2022, that the feud reignited in a more public and direct way.
On the album, Kendrick threw more shade at Drake, with lyrics that clearly targeted him, further stoking the fire between the two.
Drake, never one to stay silent for long, responded with the leaked diss track Push-ups, in which he took aim not only at Kendrick but also at other rivals. The track further entrenched the rift, making it clear that the feud between them was far from over.
Perhaps the most complex and prolonged feud in Drake’s career has been with The Weeknd. Their relationship has been turbulent for over a decade, with both artists once sharing a close bond before drifting apart.
In the early days of The Weeknd’s rise to fame, he was heavily associated with Drake, even joining his OVO Sound label.
However, despite the early collaboration, The Weeknd ultimately chose to sign with Republic Records instead, a decision that caused significant tension between the two.
It is rumored that Drake felt betrayed by The Weeknd’s decision not to sign with OVO, and this marked the beginning of a strained relationship. Over time, their professional relationship soured even further, largely due to personal and creative differences.
Drake’s alleged romantic involvement with The Weeknd’s ex-girlfriend, Bella Hadid, only added fuel to the fire, intensifying the already fragile relationship between the two.
The rift was further cemented when The Weeknd began to distance himself from Drake publicly, particularly when it became clear that he was no longer willing to collaborate with the Canadian rapper.
The Weeknd’s decision to align himself with other prominent artists, including Future and Metro Boomin, who were both involved in dissing Drake, sent a clear signal that he was no longer interested in being associated with Drake in any capacity.
In fact, The Weeknd’s involvement in Metro Boomin’s Heroes & Villains album and Future’s various projects seemed like an indirect declaration of war against Drake, as both artists had ongoing conflicts with him.
The Weeknd’s shift away from Drake’s camp and his decision to collaborate with artists who were publicly feuding with Drake solidified his stance in the ongoing rap civil war.
His disses, though not always direct, were clear to anyone paying attention. At times, he even hinted at their rivalry through his lyrics, creating an atmosphere of tension that only seemed to escalate over time.
The animosity between Drake and these artists—Future, Metro Boomin, Kendrick Lamar, and The Weeknd—reveals much about the competitive nature of the rap industry.
In a world where success is often measured by chart dominance, cultural influence, and industry power, artists who were once friends or collaborators can easily become rivals.
The pressure to stay relevant, the desire for creative control, and the constant competition for accolades and attention all contribute to the creation of these beefs.
For Drake, who has long been one of the most successful and influential artists in the rap world, it is perhaps inevitable that he would clash with others who sought to challenge his dominance.
However, these feuds are not just about competition; they also highlight the more personal side of the rap game. Loyalty, trust, and respect are essential in the world of hip-hop, and when those values are perceived to be betrayed, it can lead to deep and lasting rifts.
Drake’s feuds with Future, Metro Boomin, Kendrick Lamar, and The Weeknd are not just about music; they are also about personal betrayal, artistic differences, and the fragile nature of relationships in the high-stakes world of celebrity and fame.
Ultimately, the reason why everybody seems to hate Drake is not simply a matter of artistic rivalry, but a complex web of personal, professional, and creative conflicts.
From his exclusion from Metro Boomin’s album to his ongoing issues with Kendrick Lamar and his fractured relationship with The Weeknd, Drake’s journey through the rap industry has been marked by turbulence and division.
While Drake remains one of the most successful and influential figures in music today, his feuds with other artists are a reminder that even the most successful careers are often built on a foundation of competition, ego, and betrayal.
In the world of hip-hop, where success is hard-earned and constantly contested, no artist is immune to the challenges of rivalry and the bitter taste of betrayal.