Hip-hop heavyweights Drake and Kendrick Lamar have just etched their names into the annals of music history.
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) dropped the news today that Drake’s chart-toppers ‘Best I Ever Had’ and ‘Hold On, We’re Going Home’ have achieved Diamond status. This feat takes his tally to a record-breaking 10 Diamond-certified releases, including hits like ‘God’s Plan,’ ‘One Dance,’ ‘Hotline Bling,’ ‘Sicko Mode,’ and ‘No Guidance.’
Meanwhile, Kendrick’s viral diss track aimed at Drake, ‘Not Like Us,’ has finally bowed out of the Billboard Hot 100 after an unprecedented 53 consecutive weeks, making it the longest-charting rap song ever. The two rap titans have been locked in a public spat since 2013, trading barbs through multiple diss tracks, including Kendrick’s ‘Euphoria,’ ‘Meet the Grahams,’ and Drake’s ‘First Person Shooter,’ and ‘Taylor Made Freestyle.’
With this achievement, Drake has leapfrogged Garth Brooks and Post Malone, who were previously tied with nine Diamond-certified tracks each, as per RIAA records, reports the Mirror US.
Kendrick’s ‘Not Like Us’ made a smashing debut at number one and racked up over 1.5 billion streams, shattering streaming records previously held by none other than Drake.
The diss track also cleaned up at the Grammys, bagging Kendrick a staggering five awards, including Song of the Year and Record of the Year. The Compton-born rapper performed the hit live during his Super Bowl show, setting new viewership records for the NFL championship game.
Drake has filed a lawsuit against Universal Music Group, accusing the record company of waging a campaign to artificially boost the popularity of the song “Not Like Us” by manipulating streaming services and airwaves, allegedly through the use of fake accounts and paid promotions. Universal Music Group has strenuously denied these allegations, labeling them as “offensive and untrue.”
In response, a Universal Music Group spokesperson recently told Variety, “Nowhere in the hundred-plus page ‘legal’ blather written by Drake’s lawyers do they bother to acknowledge that Drake himself has written and performed massively successful songs containing equally provocative taunts against other artists.”
“Nor do they mention that it was Drake who started this particular exchange. Apparently, Drake’s lawyers believe that when Drake willingly participates in a performative rap-battle of music and poetry, he can be ‘defamed’ even though he engages in the exact same form of creative expression.”
