Why Drake’s Use Of Tupac And Snoop AI In Kendrick Lamar Feud Is Gross AF

On Friday (April 19), Drake released his second “diss” track aimed at Kendrick Lamar on Instagram entitled “Taylor Made Freestyle.” On it, he tells the Pulitzer Prize-winning emcee to hurry up and respond to him. Essentially, the “Toosie Slide” rapper is having a light-skinned temper tantrum.

Yes, Lamar came for Drake’s whole neck on Future and Metro Boomin’s “Like That” last month from the pair’s latest album “We Don’t Trust You.” Drake faced immense pressure to respond, and he did with not one, but two forgettable songs.

However, “Taylor Made Freestyle” is the worst of the tracks for two very big reasons. The first is his disturbing use of AI to emulate verses from the late Tupac Shakur and the very much alive Snoop Dogg.

Tupac, who engaged in the most infamous hip hop rivalry with the late Notorious B.I.G., possessed a lyrical poeticism based in harrowing life experiences as a Black man in America who had numerous run-ins with the law.

A biracial, Canadian child actor writing pathetic bars using Pac’s voice is one of the most egregious things to ever happen in the history of hip hop. Drake has become known for his ridiculous dance moves, fake Jamaican accents, alleged plastic surgeries and womanizing ways.

He knew he could never appear tough or be taken seriously in an actual rap battle (remember when Pusha T eviscerated him with that infamous blackface photo and a secret child?) so he needed technology for a sad and infuriating boost.

The second reason is that the track, which is named after Taylor Swift, praises the world’s most famous mediocre white woman in a rivalry between two Black men. Of course, Drake knew naming the track this would gain traction for this very reason.

He states that Kendrick is waiting to release a response to avoid Swiftie mania stemming from her “Tortured Poets Department” album release. “Yeah, shout out to Taylor Swift/Biggest gangster in the music game right now/You know, I moved my album when she dropped/I said that already” Drake recites on the track.

Drake, whose delusions of grandeur and misogynistic ways left some of his fans disenchanted over the years, knows damn well Kendrick is operating at his own pace. Unlike Drizzy, he’s not worried about popularity or going viral—Kendrick is concerned about true greatness taking time.