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The Province
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Province
Drake loses $1M bet, blames Bieber Curse for Maple Leafs' epic Game 7 loss
Rapper lost $1 million betting on Toronto to beat the Panthers Justin Bieber had a front-row seat as the Toronto Maple Leafs blew yet another Game 7. Photo by Justin Bieber / Instagram Heading into Sunday night's crucial Game 7, Drake went with his heart and bet big on the Toronto Maple Leafs to beat the Florida Panthers. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles by top sports columnists Patrick Johnston, Ben Kuzma, J.J. Abrams and others. Plus, Canucks Report, Sports and Headline News newsletters and events. Unlimited online access to The Province and 15 news sites with one account. The Province ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles and comics, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles by top sports columnists Patrick Johnston, Ben Kuzma, J.J. Abrams and others. Plus, Canucks Report, Sports and Headline News newsletters and events. Unlimited online access to The Province and 15 news sites with one account. The Province ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles and comics, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Known for cursing teams he's supporting publicly (f or those unaware, the 'Drake Curse' emerged after an unscientific study determined that the teams the One Dance hitmaker supports have a tendency to lose) , the Toronto rapper asked his 142 million Instagram followers: 'Do I dare bet on Game 7 … I will let the people decide.' Drake attends the Maple Leafs-Bruins Game 4 at Scotiabank Arena on April 17, 2019. Photo by NHL / X The majority of the musician's admirers encouraged Drake to 'Fire It Up' and make the wager, with just 25% warning the five-time Grammy winner he was going to curse the Buds. A small number of fans (14%) suggested Billboard's Artist of the Decade Award winner should 'Bet on Florida to Reverse the Curse' (an interesting tactic he used when the Toronto Raptors faced the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2019 NBA Playoffs). This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. But Drake listened to his followers and plunked down $1 million on Toronto to beat the defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers, sharing a screengrab on his Instagram Story along with the caption, 'The people have spoken. LFG.' Essential reading for hockey fans who eat, sleep, Canucks, repeat. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. After the Panthers trampled the Maple Leafs 6-1 in Game 7 en route to another Eastern Conference final, Drake returned to social media to blame fellow pop star J ustin Bieber for the team's loss. Moments after the Leafs' defeat, Drake posted a simple two-word message to his Instagram Story : 'Bieber curse.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. One person reminded him that he should have gambled on Florida, 'that way (you would be) happy (with) either outcome.' Dressed like a 'lobster roll,' Bieber, who's a lifelong Leafs fan, was joined by his wife Hailey as the couple sat behind the team's bench Sunday night. 'I'm a slut for these boys,' the fur hat-wearing Bieber wrote, captioning a series of photos and videos from Game 7, including one of Leafs captain Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. TNT's Kenny Albert called Bieber 'one of the biggest Maple Leafs fans' when the singer was shown on Sunday night's broadcast. Other fans said his appearance was a distraction. But as he bopped along in the stands, Bieber had a front-row seat to watch as the team unravelled yet again, losing its seventh consecutive Game 7. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. With the trouncing, Toronto's NHL Playoff appearances continue to be a case study in futility. The team hasn't made a trip to the conference finals since 2002 or won a Stanley Cup since 1967. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Bieber has never been shy about his Leafs fandom, and after repeated heartbreak in the NHL Playoffs, the pop star proudly predicted Toronto would be hoisting the Stanley Cup this June. Following Toronto's Game 1 victory against Florida, Bieber shared a collection of Maple Leaf logos and captioned his slideshow, 'New series starts tonight. This is the yearski.' After the Leafs edged out Florida 5-4 to take Game 1, the two-time Grammy winner returned to Instagram to celebrate. Lounging on a couch, the Stratford, Ont. native nodded along as the players gathered around substitute goalie Joseph Woll, who stopped 17 shots in relief after goaltender Anthony Stolarz took a shot to the head from Panthers forward Sam Bennett. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. '1 down @mapleleafs,' Bieber wrote alongside the short clip. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Bieber was quiet during Toronto's first-round series against the Ottawa Senators, whom the squad beat in six games. But periodically o ver the years, the Peaches singer , who is pals with Matthews, has fearlessly cheered on Toronto on social media. His 2021 song Hold On ( a track he said was a 'love letter to the Maple Leafs') was dedicated to the players and he even co-designed one of the Leafs' alternate 'Next Gen' jerseys. During the pandemic-shortened NHL season back in 2021, the London, Ont.-born pop star took his fandom to a whole new level when he picked the Leafs to win the Stanley Cup. Bieber regularly posted about the Leafs that season on his Instagram, but after the club blew a 3-1 series lead to lose in the first round against the Montreal Canadiens, some fans wondered if the singer had jinxed the team by his overzealous boasting. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Prior to that series, Bieber was spotted on the Jumbotron during a Game 6 defeat at the hands of the Washington Capitals back in 2016. In 2019, Leafs fans blamed Bieber and Drake — who were spotted cheering on the team in person throughout the series — following the team's Game 7 exit at the hands of the Boston Bruins, prompting then-Leafs coach Mike Babcock to weigh in on allegations of a curse. 'I've heard lots of things since I've come here,' Babcock said at the time. 'But that's one of the craziest things. The game is played on the ice by us. There's no curse whatsoever.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. After the 2021 debacle, Bieber kept his Leafs social media mentions to a minimum. But the father of one did manage to pop up in person at Scotiabank Arena once in a while, most notably dressed as 'Willy Wonka' during a December 2022 tilt against the Los Angeles Kings. Pop star Justin Bieber cheers on the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena during a rout of the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday, Dec. 8. Photo by Toronto Maple Leafs / Twitter During one surprise appearance in 2023, Drake spotted Bieber's social media post and playfully asked why he wasn't invited to tag along. Bieber was also a celebrity coach during the 2024 All-Star Game, in which he led Team Matthews to victory over Team McDavid. After leading the Atlantic Division with a 52-26-4 record, the Leafs now face a long offseason of uncertainty. But Bieber will continue to cheer on the lineup. As he left the arena, he shared a carousel of photos of himself and Hailey kissing . This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. ' I don't remember a time in my life when I haven't been obsessed with the leafsssss,' he wrote. 'This year we made it farther than we have in so long and I'm happy about that. I can be patient cuz I know this is the team to do it.' Meanwhile, Drake might want to think twice before he places a bet on any other teams during the NHL Playoffs. Last June, the rhymester bet $500,000 on the Edmonton Oilers to win the Stanley Cup. But the Juno winner saw that money vanish when the Panthers won Game 7, 2-1. Drake also saw $500,000 flutter away when he laid odds on the Dallas Mavericks to beat the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals. mdaniell@ Read More Vancouver Canucks Vancouver Canucks Sports Sports News
Toronto Sun
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Toronto Sun
Drake loses $1M bet, blames Bieber Curse for Maple Leafs' epic Game 7 loss
Rapper lost $1 million betting on Toronto to beat the Panthers Get the latest from Mark Daniell straight to your inbox Justin Bieber had a front-row seat as the Toronto Maple Leafs blew yet another Game 7. Photo by Justin Bieber / Instagram Heading into Sunday night's crucial Game 7, Drake went with his heart and bet big on the Toronto Maple Leafs to beat the Florida Panthers. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Known for cursing teams he's supporting publicly (f or those unaware, the 'Drake Curse' emerged after an unscientific study determined that the teams the One Dance hitmaker supports have a tendency to lose) , the Toronto rapper asked his 142 million Instagram followers: 'Do I dare bet on Game 7 … I will let the people decide.' Drake attends the Maple Leafs-Bruins Game 4 at Scotiabank Arena on April 17, 2019. Photo by NHL / X The majority of the musician's admirers encouraged Drake to 'Fire It Up' and make the wager, with just 25% warning the five-time Grammy winner he was going to curse the Buds. A small number of fans (14%) suggested Billboard's Artist of the Decade Award winner should 'Bet on Florida to Reverse the Curse' (an interesting tactic he used when the Toronto Raptors faced the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2019 NBA Playoffs). This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. But Drake listened to his followers and plunked down $1 million on Toronto to beat the defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers, sharing a screengrab on his Instagram Story along with the caption, 'The people have spoken. LFG.' Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. After the Panthers trampled the Maple Leafs 6-1 in Game 7 en route to another Eastern Conference final, Drake returned to social media to blame fellow pop star J ustin Bieber for the team's loss. Moments after the Leafs' defeat, Drake returned to social media with a simple two-word message: 'Bieber curse.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. One person reminded him that he should have gambled on Florida, 'that way (you would be) happy (with) either outcome.' Dressed like a 'lobster roll,' Bieber, who's a lifelong Leafs fan, was joined by his wife Hailey as the couple sat behind the team's bench Sunday night. 'I'm a slut for these boys,' the fur hat-wearing Bieber wrote, captioning a series of photos and videos from Game 7, including one of Leafs captain Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. TNT's Kenny Albert called Bieber 'one of the biggest Maple Leafs fans' when the singer was shown on Sunday night's broadcast. Other fans said his appearance was a distraction. But as he bopped along in the stands, Bieber had a front-row seat to watch as the team unravelled yet again, losing its seventh consecutive Game 7. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. With the trouncing, Toronto's NHL Playoff appearances continue to be a case study in futility. The team haven't made a trip to the conference finals since 2002 or won a Stanley Cup since 1967. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Bieber has never been shy about his Leafs fandom, and after repeated heartbreak in the NHL Playoffs, the pop star proudly predicted Toronto would be hoisting the Stanley Cup this June. Following Toronto's Game 1 victory against Florida, Bieber shared a collection of Maple Leaf logos and captioned his slideshow, 'New series starts tonight. This is the yearski.' After the Leafs edged out Florida 5-4 to take Game 1, the two-time Grammy winner returned to Instagram to celebrate. Lounging on a couch, the Stratford, Ont. native nodded along as the players gathered around substitute goalie Joseph Woll, who stopped 17 shots in relief after goaltender Anthony Stolarz took a shot to the head from Panthers forward Sam Bennett. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. '1 down @mapleleafs,' Bieber wrote alongside the short clip. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Bieber was quiet during Toronto's first-round series against the Ottawa Senators, whom the squad beat in six games. But periodically o ver the years, the Peaches singer , who is pals with Matthews, has fearlessly cheered on Toronto on social media. His 2021 song Hold On ( a track he said was a 'love letter to the Maple Leafs') was dedicated to the players and he even co-designed one of the Leafs' alternate 'Next Gen' jerseys. During the pandemic-shortened NHL season back in 2021, the London, Ont.-born pop star took his fandom to a whole new level when he picked the Leafs to win the Stanley Cup. Bieber regularly posted about the Leafs that season on his Instagram, but after the club blew a 3-1 series lead to lose in the first round against the Montreal Canadiens, some fans wondered if the singer had jinxed the team by his overzealous boasting. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Prior to that series, Bieber was spotted on the Jumbotron during a Game 6 defeat at the hands of the Washington Capitals back in 2016. In 2019, Leafs fans blamed Bieber and Drake — who were spotted cheering on the team in person throughout the series — following the team's Game 7 exit at the hands of the Boston Bruins, prompting then-Leafs coach Mike Babcock to weigh in on allegations of a curse. 'I've heard lots of things since I've come here,' Babcock said at the time. 'But that's one of the craziest things. The game is played on the ice by us. There's no curse whatsoever.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. After the 2021 debacle, Bieber kept his Leafs social media mentions to a minimum. But the father of one did manage to pop up in person at Scotiabank Arena once in a while, most notably dressed as 'Willy Wonka' during a December 2022 tilt against the Los Angeles Kings. Pop star Justin Bieber cheers on the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena during a rout of the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday, Dec. 8. Photo by Toronto Maple Leafs / Twitter During one surprise appearance in 2023, Drake spotted Bieber's social media post and playfully asked why he wasn't invited to tag along. Bieber was also a celebrity coach during the 2024 All-Star Game, in which he led Team Matthews to victory over Team McDavid. After leading the Atlantic Division with a 52-26-4 record, the Leafs now face a long offseason of uncertainty. But Bieber will continue to cheer on the lineup. As he left the arena, he shared a carousel of photos of himself and Hailey kissing . This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. ' I don't remember a time in my life when I haven't been obsessed with the leafsssss,' he wrote. 'This year we made it farther than we have in so long and I'm happy about that. I can be patient cuz I know this is the team to do it.' Meanwhile, Drake might want to think twice before he places a bet on any other teams during the NHL Playoffs. Last June, the rhymester bet $500,000 on the Edmonton Oilers to win the Stanley Cup. But the Juno winner saw that money vanish when the Panthers won Game 7, 2-1. Drake also saw $500,000 flutter away when he laid odds on the Dallas Mavericks to beat the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals. mdaniell@ Read More
Korea Herald
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Did Simcheong truly want to give herself up for her father? 'Pure Heart' asks
With dreamlike underwater realm, fresh emotional lens, latest Simcheong story brings new depth to beloved folktale At the prow of a boat amid crashing waves, a small girl plunges into a vast ocean. The iconic scene of Korean folktale "Simcheong" is the epitome of filial devotion: The girl casts herself into the Indangsu Sea to restore her blind father's sight. In 'Pure Heart,' the National Jeongdong Theater's latest reinterpretation of this age-old tale, Simcheong awakens after plunging into the shadowy abyss not in darkness or deep blue, but in soft pink light and waves, in a glowing, luminous undersea realm. The Dragon Queen — not the Dragon King of the original tale — gently lifts and welcomes Simcheong. Dressed in flowing robes of rose and blush and holding a lotus-shaped fan, a court of handmaidens circles her in synchronized harmony. There is no suffering here, no sorrow, no pain. Simcheong beams and leaps lightly across the stage — radiant, embraced by this new, gentle world. Directed by Jung Ku-ho and choreographed by Jeong Hye-jin — the creative team behind sold-out success 'One Dance' — 'Pure Heart' is a dance drama that strips back the traditional narrative to focus on Simcheong's emotional journey. 'We wanted the sea to feel like a place of warmth and welcome (to Simcheong). And we wanted to give her that motherly love she had long been missing," Jung said during a press conference on Thursday, adding that the Dragon Queen serves as a maternal figure for Simcheong, who lost her own mother at birth. 'We asked ourselves: How do we remake this folktale in a way that feels different and fresh?' said Jung, a fashion designer-turned-creative director known for visually striking interpretations of Korean tradition in works like 'The Banquet' and 'Scent of Ink,' both rare sold-out successes in the Korean dance scene. 'We chose to follow Simcheong's emotions closely,' he added. So rather than beginning with her childhood, the performance opens on the night before her sacrifice. On a sparse stage, Simcheong wrestles with her decision. Her inner doubts take form as a shadowy double in black, echoing her hesitation and fear. 'Even if filial duty was considered absolute in the past, would Simcheong truly have been content to give herself up?' Jung mused. 'We wanted to separate her outward actions from her inner voice — and follow that voice, too. Every scene is selected based on Simcheong's emotional perspective, with minimal storytelling.' Veteran screen actor Chae Shi-ra makes her stage dance debut as the Dragon Queen, leading a nearly 15-minute sequence of graceful, sweeping movement. Dressed in flowing pastel silks, Chae anchors the fantasy with elegance and gentleness. 'I never imagined the word 'dancer' would be attached to my name,' Chae said, laughing. 'This felt like training for a new profession. The rehearsal process was grueling — I'd call it more training than practice. Choreographer Jeong (Hye-jin) worked tirelessly to guide me.' If Act II is a dream, Act III returns to solid ground. Here, Simcheong is brought back to life and rewarded with royal marriage. The final act is a visual homage to Korean heritage, featuring costumes inspired by 1920s royal court dress and stylized interpretations of state ceremonies. 'Each act has its own tone and texture,' said choreographer Jeong. 'Because the narrative is carried almost entirely through dance, the costumes and visual language had to be expressive. In the final act, we wanted to highlight the beauty of Korean tradition, blending historical references with a modern sensibility.' 'Pure Heart' runs from Thursday to June 28 at the Jeongdong Theater, with 50 performances by two alternating casts scheduled over two months — an unprecedented run for a national performing arts company in Korea. 'We believe traditional performances can resonate with contemporary audiences — and with international visitors as well. I hope a longer run gives more people the chance to see it,' said Jeongdong Theater CEO Choung Soung-sook. hwangdh@
Korea Herald
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
With dreamlike underwater realm, fresh emotional lens, latest Simcheong story brings new depth to beloved folktale
Jeongdong Theater dance production 'Pure Heart' runs until June 28 At the prow of a boat amid crashing waves, a small girl plunges into a vast ocean. The iconic scene of Korean folktale "Simcheong" is the epitome of filial devotion: The girl casts herself into the Indangsu Sea to restore her blind father's sight. In 'Pure Heart,' the National Jeongdong Theater's latest reinterpretation of this age-old tale, after plunging into the shadowy abyss Simcheong awakens not in darkness or deep blue, but in soft pink light and waves, in a glowing, luminous undersea realm. The Dragon Queen — not the Dragon King of the original tale — gently lifts and welcomes Simcheong. Dressed in flowing robes of rose and blush and holding a a lotus-shaped fan, a court of handmaidens circles her in synchronized harmony. There is no suffering here, no sorrow, no pain. Simcheong beams and leaps lightly across the stage — radiant, embraced by this new, gentle world. Directed by Jung Ku-ho and choreographed by Jeong Hye-jin — the creative team behind sold-out success 'One Dance' — 'Pure Heart' is a dance drama that strips back the traditional narrative to focus on Simcheong's emotional journey. 'We wanted the sea to feel like a place of warmth and welcome (to Simcheong). And we wanted to give her that motherly love she had long been missing," Jung said during a press conference on Thursday, adding that the Dragon Queen serves as a maternal figure for Simcheong, who lost her own mother at birth. 'We asked ourselves: How do we remake this folktale in a way that feels different and fresh?' said Jung, a fashion designer-turned-creative director known for visually striking interpretations of Korean tradition in works like 'The Banquet' and 'Scent of Ink,' both rare sold-out successes in the Korean dance scene. 'We chose to follow Simcheong's emotions closely,' he added. So rather than beginning with her childhood, the performance opens on the night before her sacrifice. On a sparse stage, Simcheong wrestles with her decision. Her inner doubts take form as a shadowy double in black, echoing her hesitation and fear. 'Even if filial duty was considered absolute in the past, would Simcheong truly have been content to give herself up?' Jung mused. 'We wanted to separate her outward actions from her inner voice — and follow that voice, too. Every scene is selected based on Simcheong's emotional perspective, with minimal storytelling.' Veteran screen actor Chae Shi-ra makes her stage dance debut as the Dragon Queen, leading a nearly 15-minute sequence of graceful, sweeping movement. Dressed in flowing pastel silks, Chae anchors the fantasy with elegance and gentleness. 'I never imagined the word 'dancer' would be attached to my name,' Chae said, laughing. 'This felt like training for a new profession. The rehearsal process was grueling — I'd call it more training than practice. Choreographer Jeong (Hye-jin) worked tirelessly to guide me.' If Act II is a dream, Act III returns to solid ground. Here, Simcheong is brought back to life and rewarded with royal marriage. The final act is a visual homage to Korean heritage, featuring costumes inspired by 1920s royal court dress and stylized interpretations of state ceremonies. 'Each act has its own tone and texture,' said choreographer Jeong. 'Because the narrative is carried almost entirely through dance, the costumes and visual language had to be expressive. In the final act, we wanted to highlight the beauty of Korean tradition, blending historical references with a modern sensibility.' 'Pure Heart' runs from Thursday to June 28 at the Jeongdong Theater, with 50 performances by two alternating casts scheduled over two months — an unprecedented run for a national performing arts company in Korea. 'We believe traditional performances can resonate with contemporary audiences — and with international visitors as well. I hope a longer run gives more people the chance to see it,' said Jeongdong Theater CEO Choung Soung-sook.
The Independent
18-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Drake vs Kendrick: A timeline of the feud between the two rappers
One is a chart-dominating artist who pops streaming records as frequently as he does champagne bottles; the other is possibly the greatest rapper of all time, with multiple Grammy wins and a Pulitzer Prize to his name. Many fans would agree that Drake and Kendrick Lamar operate in entirely different lanes. Drake entertains with summery rap-pop jams such as 'One Dance' and 'Hotline Bling', dabbling in trap, dancehall and R&B along the way, while Lamar has asserted himself as a deft lyricist capable of blending street smarts with a literary wit. Yet their once friendly relationship has descended into years of traded barbs and thinly veiled disses, fuelled by fans who clash over which one is the better artist, and finally boiling over into a full-blown feud. Here's a look at their relationship over the years as Lamar headlines the 2025 Super Bowl halftime show with Drake's ex, SZA. 2011 – Kendrick Lamar's career beginnings and initial friendship Lamar and Drake were once on relatively friendly terms, with the Canadian artist inviting Lamar out on his Club Paradise headline tour. Lamar said in an early career interview that he and Drake 'clicked immediately', describing the fellow rapper as a 'genuine soul' and revealing that Drake was the first person outside of his immediate team to hear his debut album Section 80. Drake later invited K-Dot to feature on his forthcoming second album, Take Care. 2012 – Kendrick's star begins to rise, early shots are fired Around the release of Lamar's critically acclaimed second album, Good Kid, MAAD City, on which Drake featured, tension appeared to begin brewing between the pair, seemingly in part due to their differing attitudes towards wealth and fame. Where Lamar tends to avoid sharing details of his personal life on social media, Drake is known for sharing frequent posts about his lavish lifestyle to his millions of Instagram followers, from private jets to couture and luxury cars. Lamar discussed this openly in interviews, hinting that he believed bragging about money and fame was superficial, and his own music tackled deeper matters. The two also seemed to grow colder towards one another as Lamar began to experience commercial and critical success, scooping major awards and receiving universal praise for Good Kid, MAAD City and being invited to star on tracks by other major artists. In public, Drake continued to congratulate Lamar for a number of his successes, until 2013, when Lamar dropped a verse on Big Sean's track 'Control' that made it clear he considered himself above other rappers… including Drake. While rappers such as A$AP Rocky, who was also name-checked, seemed pleased to be namechecked by Lamar at all, believing his competitive nature to be healthy for hip-hop, Drake seemed less enamoured. 'Was that real or was that just for the people?' he asked in an interview on Hot 97 after Lamar's guest verse came out. 'Those were harsh words, right? It's like, you can't just say that and then see me and be like, 'Yeah man…' pretending like nothing ever happened. That's not real, man.' Drake doubled down on this stance in a later interview where he implied that Lamar was more about a 'moment' than creating bodies of work, questioning whether he would release something that could top Good Kid, MAAD City. He then released his third album, 2013's Nothing Was the Same, in which he appeared to take aim at Lamar on 'The Language', rapping: 'F*** any n***a that's talking that s*** just to get a reaction.' On the same track, he referred to himself as 'the kid with the motormouth / I am the one you should worry about.' He also seemed to mock Lamar's attitude towards wealth, rapping: 'N***as downplaying the money but that's what you do when the money down.' On a recent episode of the What's the Dirt YouTube show, in which host Matt delves into beefs between prominent hip-hop artists, it was suggested that Drake was being contemptuous of Lamar's rapid-fire delivery, and felt that his own music had more substance. 'It's clearly about Kendrick,' he said, citing instances where Lamar appeared to laugh at Drake's expense during interviews and suggesting K-Dot might have said something behind the 'Hold On' singer's back, which later made its way to him. Drake's resentment might have grown after Lamar seemingly mocked Drake for being 'sensitive during a freestyle with ScHoolboy Q, Jay Rock, Ab Soul and Isaiah Rashad: 'Nothing's been the same since they dropped 'Control'/ And tucked a sensitive rapper back in his pyjama clothes.' Fans were convinced he was talking about Drake, given he'd cited the title of the fellow rapper's recent album, Nothing Was the Same. Drake then got personal a few weeks later on Future's track 'S**t', where he pointed out that Lamar played his biggest shows at the time around his hometown in Los Angeles while supporting Drake on tour in 2012: 'Took n***as out the hood like I'm from there / So you know it's all good when I come there / I hear you talk about your city like you run that / And I brought my tour to your city, you my son there, n***a.' By the end of 2013, the relationship between the pair had grown distinctly chilly; they appeared on the same track for the last time with A$AP Rocky on 'F**kin' Problems'. 2014 – the public digs grow more frequent, even as Lamar plays down the beef A few months after Drake appeared on Future's track, controversy erupted at the Grammy Awards when rapper Macklemore won Album of the Year over Lamar, who was nominated for Good Kid, MAAD City, now widely regarded as one of the greatest hip-hop records of all time. Macklemore, real name Benjamin Hammond Haggerty, then shared a text on Instagram that he sent to Lamar after the win, in which he confessed that he felt the fellow rapper was 'robbed' and that he'd been rooting for Lamar to win. Drake was unimpressed by this, calling Macklemore out in an interview with Rolling Stone where he said the apology felt 'cheap'. If Macklemore was going to hand out apologies, Drake said, he should have offered one to other nominees: 'That s*** made me feel funny,' he said. 'No, in that case, you robbed everybody. We all need text messages!' Lamar and Drake continued to take subtle swipes at one another on guest features, but K-Dot seemed to dismiss fan speculation and suggest they were 'digging too far' in a radio interview that aired later that year. In What's the Dirt, the host notes that despite this, Lamar continued to make digs about what he perceived to be the difference between his artistry and Drake's, leaning into the public perception that Drake was a glorified pop artist, rather than a credible hip-hop star skilled in the art of lyricism. 'Comparing these projects makes zero sense,' Matt said, referring to Lamar's Grammy-winning album To Pimp a Butterfly and Drake's If You're Reading This It's Too Late, both released in 2015. 'Drake's project was great for club DJs, gym playlists, cruising in the car… whereas Kendrick's album touched on real-world issues, was chanted during protests, and is looked at today as one of the greatest hip-hop albums of all time,' he said. In summer that year, controversy was sparked after rapper Meek Mill accused Drake of using a ghostwriter for his guest verse on Mill's recent LP, leading to a number of barbed exchanges in diss tracks. Drake defended himself against the allegations in September, telling The Fader: 'I need, sometimes, individuals to spark an idea so that I can take off running. Music at times can be a collaborative process, you know? Who came up with this, who came up with that – for me, it's like, I know that it takes me to execute every single thing that I've done up until this point. And I'm not ashamed.' However, this didn't stop fans scrambling to point out that Lamar had hinted at a fellow rapper using ghostwriters in his hit single, 'King Kunta', which featured on To Pimp a Butterfly: 'I can dig rappin', but a rapper with a ghostwriter? / What the f*** happened? / I swore I wouldn't tell…' 2016 – Drake dominates sales and streams, but Kendrick is the critical darling Both artists seemed to cool down as they focused on their respective projects, with Drake dropping his fourth studio album, the Jamaican dancehall-influenced Views, in April 2016. The record spawned a number of major hits including 'One Dance', 'Hotline Bling' and 'Controlla', leading to the Canadian star becoming the most-streamed artist of the year. It also resulted in Drake achieving his first ever UK No 1 album, as it also debuted at the top of the US Billboard 200. However, Drake couldn't resist making a few digs around that time, rapping with The Game on his track '100' about the perception of him as a pop artist: 'I would have all of your fans if I didn't go pop / And I stayed on some conscious sh**.' A year later, Lamar released his own fourth album, DAMN, and received considerably more critical praise than Drake had for Views. Where reviews of Drake's album were mixed, critics lavished praise on DAMN, even directly pitting it against Views. 'It's Mr Lamar's version of the creeping paranoia that has become de rigueur for midcareer Drake,' Jon Caramanica wrote for the New York Times. 'And yet this is most likely Mr Lamar's most jubilant album, the one in which his rhymes are the least tangled.' Drake seemed to try and squash any past beef, however, the month Lamar dropped DAMN, posting a comment on the Instagram page of Tidal's editorial director Elliot Wilson showing that DAMN had out-sold Drake's More Life mixtape in its opening week by 100,000 copies. 'Amazing to see our music moving!' Drake wrote, also liking a comment by a fan who suggested he, Lamar and J Cole collaborate on a track. Three years after DAMN' s release, Lamar would become the first rapper in history to win the Pulitzer Prize for music, marking the first time a non-classical or jazz artist had won the distinguished award. Through this time, however, Lamar goes quiet with new music releases (with the exception of the Black Panther film soundtrack in 2018, which spawned a few extra Grammy nominations including Song of the Year for 'All the Stars' with SZA). Meanwhile, Drake continues to dominate the charts with a string of releases including his Scary Hours EP and his fifth album, 2018's Scorpion, which included the singles 'God's Plan', 'Nice for What' and 'I'm Upset'. By this point, the public interest in comparing the two artists was so pronounced that even the then-president, Barack Obama, was asked to declare which one he favoured. 2019 – Mr Morale & the Big Steppers While Drake has seemed to make occasional attempts to hand Lamar an olive branch, the Compton rapper remains tight-lipped unless he's taking swipes on a track. But after K-Dot took almost five years to release the follow-up to DAMN, his 2022 album Mr Morale & the Big Steppers, Drake apparently couldn't resist an opportunity to lash out. 'I know it's summertime, I've gotta give you s***!' he told fans during a show for his It's All a Blur tour in 2023. 'I don't know about these guys that go away for three, four, five years and wanna chill out and all that s***. That's not me.' Drake then announced the forthcoming release of his 2024 album, For All the Dogs. Drake had previously been criticised by some for his relentless string of singles, EPs, mixtapes and studio albums, while Lamar is notorious for leaving long gaps between releases... 2024 ...Which brings us to the present day, after Lamar made a surprise appearance on 'Like That', which appears on Future and Metro Boomin's collaborative album, We Don't Trust You. K-Dot appeared to directly respond to J Cole's verse on 'First Person Shooter' from Drake's For All The Dogs, where Cole raps: 'Love when they argue the hardest MC / Is it K-Dot? Is it Aubrey? Or me? / We the big three like we started a league, but right now, I feel like Muhammad Ali.' 'Motherf*** the big three, n***a, it's just big me,' Lamar raps on 'Like That'. 'N***a, bum, What? I'm really like that/And your best work is a light pack.' Drake appeared to brush off Lamar's diss at a recent concert while on his tour with Cole, in support of It's All a Blur. 'A lot of people asking me how I'm feeling… listen, the way I'm feeling is the same way I want you to walk out of here feeling tonight about your f***ing self,' Drake told his audience, footage shared to social media on 25 March shows. 'Because you know how I'm feeling? I got my head up high, my back straight, I'm 10 f***ing toes down… and feeling like anywhere else I go… and I know no matter what, there's not a n**** on this Earth that can ever f*** with me in my life,' he shouted. 'And that's how I want y'all to walk out of here tonight…' 'But,' he continued, 'you know, you can get yourselves gassed up, riled up and move towards the future… Sometimes you've got to acknowledge the mistakes you've made in the past… right? So that's what I want you all to do. Everybody in here.' Lamar turned to openly naming Drake in his track 'euphoria', seemingly a nod to Drake's role as a producer on the hit HBO teen drama, which he dropped on a random Tuesday, 30 April. The six-minute track sees Lamar open fire on Drake's racial identity, alleged use of ghostwriters, and recent remarks and behaviour that have led to accusations of misogyny. One widely discussed moment on the track has been linked to a notorious interview with late rapper DMX. Asked whether he liked Drake in the interview, he simply said, 'No.' Pushed to elaborate, he said: 'I don't like anything about Drake. I don't like his f***ing voice, I don't like nothing he talks about. I don't like his face. I don't like the way he walks. Nothing. I don't like his haircut.' Lamar echoes this as he raps: 'I hate the way that you walk, the way that you talk/ I hate the way that you dress/ I hate the way you sneak diss, if I catch flight, it's gon' be direct.' In other searing lines, Lamar dismisses rumours he has been looking for 'dirt' on Drake: 'Why would I try to call around and try to get dirt on you? You think my life is rap? That's ho s***. I got a son to raise. But I can see you don't know nothing 'bout that,' he raps. The bars hark back to the now-infamous diss track from US rapper Pusha T, 'The Story of Adidon', which revealed that Drake had fathered a son with French former adult actor Sophie Brussaux. Drake confirmed he had a son, Adonis, a month later when he released his fifth album, Scorpion. Just a few days later and before Drake had properly responded, Lamar dropped another incendiary track, '6:16 in LA', on his Instagram. The title is once again pointed as it nods to a favoured theme in Drake's work, seen in songs such as '9am in Dallas', '8am in Charlotte' and '4pm in Calabas'. Fans have also noticed that 6/16 happens to be both Father's Day and Tupac Shakur's birthday. In another master stroke, the track was produced by Sounwave and Jack Antonoff, the latter best known for his collaborations with pop titan Taylor Swift. Drake's last diss against Lamar was 'Taylor Made Freestyle', in which he mocked Lamar for supposedly using his collab with Swift on 2016's 'Bad Blood' to gain mainstream popularity. With Antonoff, Lamar has ensured that his latest track is, in fact, 'Taylor Made'. Over a lush, mellow sample of Al Green, he regales listeners with the things he is thankful for before he turns to Drake. 'Are you finally ready to play Have You Ever? Let's see/ Have you ever thought that OVO was working for me?/ Fake bully, I hate bullies, you must be a terrible person/ Everyone inside your team's whispering that you deserve it,' he raps. Then, Lamar goes darker as he tells Drake he has moles in his camp, and that the people he views as close allies are actually working against him: 'No, you can't sleep/ These images trouble you/ No, the wires in your circle should puzzle you/ If you were street smart then you would have caught that your entourage is only to hustle you/ A hundred n****s that you cut on salary/ And 20 of 'em want you as a casualty/ And one of them is next to you...' On Saturday (4 May), the Canadian artist released 'Family Matters', made up of three parts, in which he accuses Lamar's pro-Black activism of hypocrisy. In the track he also accuses him of alleged domestic violence, and of 'begging' the Tupac estate to sue Drake for his use of AI versions of the late rapper in a diss track. 'You the Black messiah wifin' up a mixed queen,' he says referring to Lamar's childhood sweetheart and fiancée, Whitney Alford who is of mixed heritage. He denied ordering a cease and desist on Lamar, insisting such an order 'is for h*es'. He raps: 'You called the Tupac estate and begged 'em to sue me and get that s*** down.' In perhaps his most controversial lyric, heard over the end of the song as the music tails off, he adds: 'They hired a crisis management team, to clean up the fact that you beat on your queen. The picture you painted ain't what it seems.' But Lamar hit back within minutes, releasing 'Meet The Grahams' his third diss track this week, in which he accused the rapper of harbouring a secret daughter, and of having a series of addictions to gambling, alcohol, drugs, sex, and spending. 'You got gambling problems, drinking problems, pill-popping and spending problems, bad with money, whore house. Therapy's a start,' he rapped. 'You lied about your son, you lied about your daughter, huh, you lied about them other kids that's out there hoping that you come.' The 'Humble' rapper released a new track 'Not Like Us' via YouTube on Sunday (5 May). The song has racked up over 10 million views in nearly as many hours. It features an aerial image of Drake's mansion with target symbols within. In his new song, 'Not Like Us', the 'Humble' rapper called Drake a 'certified pedophile' as he made multiple references to his alleged interactions with younger women. 'Say, Drake, I hear you like 'em young,' the 36-year-old rapper began, adding that he would struggle in jail on account of his interest. 'You better not ever go to cell block one.' He went on to mock the 'God's Plan' artist's studio album Certified Lover Boy as he taunted, ' Certified Lover Boy? Certified pedophiles.' The song was released on YouTube in the early hours of Sunday morning (5 May). The artwork features an aerial shot of Drake's mansion with sex offender targets overlaid. Drake responded quickly with a new song titled 'The Heart Part 6,' referring to Lamar's ongoing, five-part single series 'The Heart' that he began in 2010. 'And we know you're dropping 6 mins after so instead of posting my address you have a lot to address,' he wrote on Instagram. On the track, Drake shuts down the story about him having a secret daughter, claiming that he and his team planted the fake story on purpose. 'The Pulitzer Prize winner is definitely spiralin',' Drake started off. 'The ones you getting you're stories from, they all clowns/I am a war general, seasoned in preparation/ My jacket is covered in medals, honor and decoration/You waited for this moment, overcome with the desperation/We plotted for a week and then we fed you the information/A daughter that's 11 years old, I bet he takes it,' he rapped. Drake went on to deny Lamar's claims that he pursued underage women, writing: 'I never been with no one underage, but now I understand why this the angle that you really mess with.' 'Just for clarity, I feel disgusted / I'm too respected / If I was f***** young girls, I promise I done been arrested / I'm way too famous for the shit you just suggested, but that's not the lesson / Clearly there's a deeper message / Deep cuts that never healed and now they got infected,' Drake rapped. 24 May 2024 Lamar has yet to respond to Drake's latest diss, suggesting he might be satisfied with the fact that 'Not Like Us' was, at the time of writing, riding at the top of the US Billboard chart and, as far as his fans were concerned, the final nail in the coffin for Drake. Drizzy, however, apparently wasn't done. On 24 May he appeared on Sexyy Red's 'U My Everything', from her new project In Sexyy We Trust. On the track, he raps over Metro Boomin's 'BBL Drizzy' beat, which the producer released online and told followers to make their own version of the song. Metro previously featured on Kendrick's early diss 'Like That' in March. The 'BBL Drizzy' title alludes to rumours that Drake underwent a 'Brazilian Butt Lift' surgery. 'Me and the surgeon got history / I changed a lot of girls' lives for real, they need a new body, they hittin' me,' Drake raps on Sexyy Red's song, as the beach switches to Metro's 'BBL Drizzy.' 'BBL Drizzy, they want a new body, they ask me for it / The last one drunk, he did it for free 'cause I sent over so many passports for him, for real.' Has the beef come full circle? 5 July 2024 Lamar rang in Independence Day by releasing the music video for his chart-topping 'Not Like Us' track. Coming less than a month after the Compton rapper performed the song six times at the Pop Out concert on Juneteenth, the music video takes multiple shots at Drake and his OVO label. 'Not Like Us' starts off with a shot of Lamar doing pushups on cinder blocks, a reference to Drake's 'Push Ups' and a callback to when the photo of Lamar working out Drake used as part of the song's rollout. Also making an appearance is Lamar's partner Whitney Alford and their two children, a callback to Drake's 'Family Matters' in which he accused Lamar of alleged domestic violence and his longtime collaborator and 'Not Like Us' director Dave Free of being the father of one of Lamar and Alford's children. The most striking dig, however, is all the owl imagery, the bird associated with Drake's OVO label. One scene features Lamar hitting an owl piñata, with a disclaimer at the bottom reading, 'No OVHoes were harmed during the making of this video', and the video's final shot is of an owl in a cage. November 2024 In what seems to be an unprecedented move, Drake files two separate legal actions against Universal Music Group and Spotify, as he accuses UMG, the owner of his label Republic Records, of artificially inflating streams of 'Not Like Us'. In allegations that UMG branded 'offensive and untrue', the filing said that UMG 'launched a campaign to manipulate and saturate the streaming services and airwaves with a song, 'Not Like Us', in order to make that song go viral, including by using 'bots' and pay-to-play agreements.' It said the company and streaming giant Spotify 'have a long-standing, symbiotic business relationship' and alleges that UMG offered special licensing rates to Spotify for the song. The petition also accused UMG of firing employees seen as loyal to Drake 'in an apparent effort to conceal its schemes'. Suffice to say, many in the hip-hop community are unimpressed. [Lamar][ said squabble up, not lawyer up,' Charlamagne Tha God jokes on social media. Grammy-nominated artist Rapsody, who featured on Lamar's critically adored 2015 album To Pimp a Butterfly, tweets: 'Legal action over losing a rap beef. My my my. Not like us at all. #Cultureovereverything.' On his podcast, rapper Joe Budden doesn't hold back, calling Drake 'selfish and manipulative' in an expletive-laden rant. Despite his claims about Spotify and UMG, Drake breezes into the number two spot as the biggest global artist of the year on the streaming platform, after Taylor Swift who claims the top spot. January 2025 Apparently not bothered about how fellow artists (or his fans) view his legal action over 'Not Like Us', Drake sues his own label, UMG, for defamation. Drake claims in the lawsuit that Universal knew the allegations detailed in 'Not Like Us' were false but 'chose corporate greed over the safety and well-being of its artists.' Lamar is not named in the suit. It continues: 'In controversy, UMG saw an opportunity, seized it, and continued to fan the flames.' The lawsuit has been filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York. It claims that Universal 'approved, published, and launched a campaign to create a viral hit out of a rap track' that was 'intended to convey the specific, unmistakable, and false factual allegation that Drake is a criminal pedophile, and to suggest that the public should resort to vigilante justice in response.' February 2025 Lamar wins Record of the Year and Song of the Year for 'Not Like Us', rubbing salt into the wound as he prepares to headline the halftime show at the 2025 Super Bow l with R&B star (and Drake's ex), SZA. March 2025 UMG filed a motion to dismiss Drake's defamation lawsuit, writing: 'Plaintiff, one of the most successful recording artists of all time, lost a rap battle that he provoked and in which he willingly participated. Instead of accepting the loss like the unbothered rap artist he often claims to be, he has sued his own record label in a misguided attempt to salve his wounds.' April 2025 Drake doubles down on his defamation suit against UMG, claiming in an amended complaint that the fact Lamar agreed to censor the word 'pedophile' during his Super Bowl performance proves the reference is defamatory. The complaint reads in part: 'The version of the recording performed during the Super Bowl Performance was modified to exclude the word 'pedophile,' but no other modifications were made. That is because nearly everyone understands that it is defamatory to falsely brand someone a 'certified pedophile.'' It continues: 'The NFL, as well as the corporate entities responsible for the televised and streaming broadcasts of the Super Bowl Performance, all understood the words 'certified pedophile' to be unacceptable in a broadcast to millions of listeners. Notwithstanding that apparent consensus, UMG continues to publish the recording absent the censoring that even Kendrick Lamar deemed acceptable for the Super Bowl Performance.'
