The J. Cole and Kendrick Lamar feud took a new turn as Cole stunned fans at the Dreamville Festival by publicly expressing remorse for his Kendrick Lamar diss track, ‘7 Minute Drill’ featured on his latest project. During his headline performance set in North Carolina on Sunday, Cole addressed the crowd about his feelings regarding the controversial song.
“I’m so proud of [‘Might Delete Later’], except for one part,” Cole said, speaking to his audience. “It’s one part of that shit that makes me feel like, man that’s the lamest shit I did in my fuckin’ life, right? And I know this is not what a lot of people want to hear,” he said.
J.Cole speaks on his response to Kendrick and says it hasn’t felt good or right with his spirit, calling his own response “corny” and telling Kendrick to return his best shot if he feels a way pic.twitter.com/jan2jctfk9
— Glock Topickz (@Glock_Topickz) April 8, 2024
Cole revealed the internal struggle he faced and how he therefore decided to respond to Lamar’s song. “I was conflicted because, one I know my heart and I know how I feel about my peers, these two n—s that I just been blessed to even stand beside in this game, let alone chase they greatness,” he said.
“So I felt conflicted ’cause I’m like, bruh I don’t even feel no way. But the world wanna see blood. I don’t know if y’all can feel that, but the world wanna see blood,” he added, referring to the discourse it caused, and the demand for rap beef.
However, he confessed that releasing the diss “spiritually [felt] bad on me“, asserting that it disrupted his peace of mind. Lauding Lamar’s talent, Cole publicly praised him as one of the greatest MCs ever, signaling a truce in their supposed feud.
“That shit disrupts my fuckin’ peace. So what I want to say right here tonight is in the midst of me doing that and in that shit, trying to find a little angle and downplay this n—a’s fucking catalog and his greatness, I want to say right now tonight, how many people think Kendrick Lamar is one of the greatest motherfucker’s to ever touch a fuckin’ microphone? Dreamville, y’all love Kendrick Lamar, correct? As do I,” he said.
“So, I just want to come up here and publicly be like, bruh, that was the lamest, goofiest shit. I say all that to say it made me feel like 10 years ago when I was moving incorrectly. And I pray that god will line me back up on my purpose and on my path, I pray that my n—a really didn’t feel no way and if he did, my n—a, I got my chin out,” the rapper said with some apparent regret.
“Take your best shot, I’ma take that shit on the chin boy, do what you do. All good. It’s love. And I pray that y’all are like, forgive a n—a for the misstep and I can get back to my true path. Because I ain’t gonna lie to y’all. The past two days felt terrible. It let me know how good I’ve been sleeping for the past 10 years,” he added.
What’s The Rift Between Cole, Kendrick Lamar And Drake?
Cole’s rift with Kendrick Lamar and Drake traces back to ‘First Person Shooter’ from Drake’s 2023 album, where Cole playfully dubbed them “the big three.” On it, Cole rapped, “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.”
Lamar’s retaliatory verse in ‘Like That’ sparked tensions. In his song, he fired back as he got right to the point. “Yeah get up with me, fuck sneak dissing / ‘First Person Shooter,’ I hope they came with three switches,” he said. “Motherfuck the big three, n—a, it’s just big me.”
While Cole may rue his diss, Drake, the third member of the trio, has sidestepped the controversy. Drake instead focused on uplifting messages during his current tour. Speaking about the feud, Drake said during one of his concerts, “A lot of people asking me how I’m feeling. The way I’m feeling is the same way I want you to walk out of here feeling tonight about your fucking self,” he said.
“Because you know how I’m feeling? I got my head up high, my back straight, I’m 10 fucking toes down, and feeling like anywhere else I go, and I know no matter what, there’s not a n—a on this Earth that can ever fuck with me in my life,” he added.
With Cole’s apology, the feud will now mellow down and it’ll be interesting to see how Lamar and Drake respond to Cole’s move.
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