By Madison Rosenfield
Kendrick and Drake’s latest beef is merely one in a fabled line of feuds which have formed the historical past of hip-hop as we all know it. Whether or not revolutionary, zeitgeist-defining or simply plain foolish, rap beef has been central to the tradition. (And, if a diss monitor sweeping all 5 of its Grammy nominations isn’t a testomony to the true energy of the rap beef, I don’t know what’s.)
Taking a quick look again on the style, hip-hop was born from the aggressive spirit of MCs going bar-for-bar at block events, rap battles, and ciphers. From there, the diss monitor emerged as a approach for rappers to air grievances, flex their lyrical expertise, and combat for cultural dominance on a bigger scale. Lately, social media has magnified these feuds’ scope and endurance—fueling instantaneous responses, even larger audiences, widespread circulation, and lots of viral memes and moments within the course of.
Whether or not one-on-one or one-on-one (as 50 Cent usually reminds us), rivalries reminiscent of those under have undoubtedly come to outline hip-hop as a style.
Eazy-E vs. Dr. Dre
One of many first large rap beef was between Eazy-E and Dr. Dre, two West Coast heavy hitters and gangsta rap pioneers. Each founding members of rap group N.W.A. had a falling out over enterprise disagreements following the success of their 1988 album Straight Outta Compton. Their brutal and public feud generated a number of iconic diss tracks and, tangentially, a critically acclaimed biopic about N.W.A.’s short-lived existence.
Tupac vs. Biggie
Sadly, feuds can flip very darkish in a short time. Take Tupac and Biggie, for instance, who discovered themselves on both aspect of what has been immortalized as one of the notorious rap rivalries ever. Rising larger than the rappers themselves, their feud escalated tensions between the East Coast and West Coast hip-hop scenes (to say the least), culminating in tragedy: these legends of the sport have been killed in drive-by shootings inside six months of one another.
Jay-Z vs. Nas
With Biggie’s premature loss of life, a kind of energy vacuum emerged within the New York rap scene. Who might accede to the King of New York’s throne? Jay-Z and Nas have been two prime contenders and, within the late ’90s and early 2000s, went toe-to-toe as a part of one other huge rap feud that rocked the world and formed hip-hop for years to return.
Kendrick Lamar vs. Drake
Two of the largest names of their technology, Kendrick and Drake, have taken the world by storm as the largest rap beef of the current. Drake isn’t any stranger to feuds, sparring with Meek Mill, Kanye West, and Pusha T (amongst others) through the years, an excessive amount of virality. He appears to need the smoke, although and by no means shies away from capitalizing on the second by way of social media.
For what it’s value, Kendrick is clearly on prime, as his Grammy wins would affirm. (Plus, ‘Tryna ring a bell and it’s prolly a minor” is among the finest bars in latest rap historical past…)
MF DOOM vs. rap beef as an idea, naturally
Ever the social commentator, MF DOOM sought to poke enjoyable on the idea of rap beef on 2003’s ‘Beef Rapp.’ In a sequence of food-related double entendres, as we see on the remainder of Mm..Meals, the monitor provides DOOM’s tackle the meat that outlined hip-hop at its
launch. Whereas not about DOOM’s precise beef with a fellow MC, a monitor like ‘Beef Rapp’ is an extra testomony to the perennial prominence of rivalry within the rap sport.
From rap battles within the streets to all-out social media wars, rap beefs have taken on numerous kinds through the years. Whereas some have gotten extra airtime than others, the rivalries talked about above (and so many extra) have maintained a big presence within the tradition. We will solely marvel who the following largest beef shall be between…
