Kendrick Lamar Calls Out Pretty Much Everyone On ‘Control’, Pretty Much Everyone Responds

The hip hop community has been woken from a deep, deep slumber this week following Kendrick Lamar’s decision to call out just about every buzzworthy rapper in a recent verse on Big Sean‘s latest track Control, prompting a sea of backlash from his so called peers. Diss tracks have begun to pop up all over the place as artists rebut his claims, injecting a healthy level of competition into the fast-homogenising scene in the process.

During his time on the mic, Lamar calls himself “The King of New York, The King of the Coast”, then skewering several of his nearest rivals, including Jermaine Cole, Big K.R.I.T., Wale, Pusha T, Meek Mill, A$AP Rocky, Drake, Jay Electronica, Tyler, The Creator, Mac Miller and Big Sean himself, implying that he may respect these artists but he’s coming for their scalps regardless:

“I’m usually homeboys with the same n****s I’m rhyming wit’
But this is hip-hop and them n****s should know what time it is
And that goes for Jermaine Cole, Big KRIT, Wale
Pusha T, Meek Mill, A$AP Rocky, Drake
Big Sean, Jay Electron’, Tyler, Mac Miller
I got love for you all but I’m tryna murder you n****s
Tryna make sure your core fans never heard of you n****s
They don’t wanna hear not one more noun or verb from you n****s”

Word. Already several artists have thrown their responses online including Lupe Fiasco, who nods towards Lamar in his track SLR 2:

“N***a you ain’t Nas, n***a you ain’t Jay Z
You will respect me, you will reject me
But I’ve done so much, no matter how far you go, you will reflect me.”

The always radio-friendly B.o.B responded with an entire track, How 2 Rap, featuring the below lyric, followed by a face-melting solo (apparently by the man himself):

“I know that I’m shinin’, I know that I’m shinin’
Don’t worry, ’cause you can find shade in my shadow…

“Give me my guitar pick, I’ll show you shit.”

Brooklyn MC Joell Ortiz also responded, “Homey, you ain’t the king of New York, you’re the next thing on my fork.”

Ice T has also weighed in on the topic, but seems delighted by the fact that there is once again healthy communication between rappers, much like the rivalry between himself an LL Cool J back in the day. The iconic rapper took to Twitter – like 99% of the hip hop community – to voice his thoughts on the situation. You can read his, and many other, reactions below.

Listen: Big Sean – Control (Featuring Kendrick Lamar & Jay Electronica)

http://youtu.be/bkZZo0XSm5s

Listen: Lupe Fiasco – SLR 2

http://youtu.be/99pEsiqxFzY

Listen: B.o.B – How 2 Rap

(Via USA Today)