Drake’s second wind: are “100 gigs” enough?

Neither DJ Akademiks nor any of his like-minded colleagues have convincingly argued why “Family Matters” is the best diss track to come out of Drake’s feud with Kendrick Lamar, beyond “it was a 20-on-1 duel” or “he rapped over three beats.” That may be enough for mediocre rap fans, but those two arguments alone embody Drake’s appeal to his core audience: quantity over quality. Drake’s turnover rate has been so high over the past four years that a third installment of the Scary hours The series came out less than a month after his highly anticipated eighth studio album and was received just as shaky. Although most expected him to For all dogsthe appearance of King Kendrick in the middle of the second leg of the Everything is blurry Tour put a stop to his plans.

We’re basically four months away from the argument of the decade. Summer is over and we’re in the final quarter of 2024, which will provide a taste of what’s to come next year. And yet, for the past few months, the Hot 100’s top chart spots historically reserved for Drake’s summer reign have been occupied by a diss song that paints him as a colonizer, pedophile, thief, trafficker, and abuser, among many other vile labels. “Not Like Us” will likely hold sway well into the fall, especially among the marching bands that anchor the spirit of HBCUs across the country.

Through strategy and consistency, Kendrick Lamar was able to diminish Drake’s star status in a matter of days. When Drake came back with The Heart Pt. 6, Kendrick was clearly the winner, but no one could have predicted the damage a record like Not Like Us would do. The barrage of insults and accusations died down, and no one except Drake’s followers felt Kendrick should continue the fight, even when he was accused of domestic violence. After years of proving he had earned his place in a battleground of hip-hop’s elite, Kendrick exposed Drake’s Achilles heel: his defensiveness. The defeat was pretty brutal to watch. The brightest graduates of Lil Wayne’s Young Money were trampled like a cigarette butt.

In the months that followed, he tried to cement his dominance through fun records (“U My Everything,” “Wha Gwan Delilah”), two records on Camilla Cabello’s album, and two more songs on Gordo’s album. None of them felt like the “summer vibes” we were promised, nor did they have any meaningful impact on the charts that Drake dominated for over 10 years. “Not Like Us” wasn’t a career-ender, but it was a song big enough to top a 15-year run of success for one summer. Drake’s Billboard successes, historic streaming achievements, and cultural value have become obsolete in the big discussion of late. Some agreed with Kendrick’s analysis of Drake’s place in hip-hop, while others went completely down the rabbit hole of the “Meet the Grahams” cover. Those who already had a disdain for Drake felt vindicated that someone with as big a platform as Kendrick Lamar Finally was said loudly in the quiet parts. But “Not Like Us” is not the death blow that people are expecting. Losing a rap battle of this magnitude is not easy to cope with. The perception of who Drake is behind the scenes has not completely evaporated. And with his back against the wall, the Canadian superstar finally has the opportunity to go on the offensive.

The launch of 100 Gigs via the @plottttwistttttt account has marked a second wind in what appears to be a new chapter in Drake’s storied career. The first drop, released in early August, featured three new songs, “It’s Up” ft. Young Thug & 21 Savage, “Red Blue Green,” and “Housekeeping Knows” ft. Latto, as well as hours of unreleased footage that offered a behind-the-scenes look at the making of popular records and albums, his travels around the world, moments with his family, and encounters with celebrity friends. Although the music itself sounded as generic as a ChatGPT prompt to write a Drake song, the moments of him playing ping pong with Stephen Curry, chatting with his mom about Serena Williams during the “Hotline Bling” session, or putting the finishing touches on albums like “The Last Man” were a real hit. Scorpio at 40 humanizes him and gives insights into the artist we initially grew to love.

But the second round feels a little darker. With many hints of a second round, the release of “No Face” and “Circadian Rhythm” felt like the beginning of a new chapter in which Drake wants his rhythm back. The former is much more confrontational and aggressive, anchored by the industrial-tinged synths and a minimal but effective inclusion of Playboi Carti. But beyond that, the record opens the floodgates for another round with a little more buildup behind it.”Try to beat the boy, but fuck it, I’m sticking around,“, he raps. “There are so many people we turn the tables on. Capo has plans, but we’ll save that for later. Hush will keep saying they know they played it wrong.“When you add to that the fact that footage recently surfaced of Drake and 40 discussing a potential collaboration with Kendrick (from 2012-2013), it’s clear that Drake is hinting that he has some kind of bombshell with the cut, be it new music or footage that might finally debunk conspiracy theories that he has a hidden 11-year-old daughter, which is literally the least disturbing aspect of ‘Meet the Grahams.'”

Internet sleuths may be going down a rabbit hole trying to decipher the hidden messages woven into diss songs and social media posts. Or maybe the speculation will end with the next 100 concerts Content dump. Ultimately, the recent string of releases shouldn’t be dismissed as an attempt to leave the narrative behind, but rather an attempt to take control of it. Either we’ll hear an album that will stoke criticism, or we’ll witness the unfolding of a diabolical plan that will put Drake’s foot on the neck of Kendrick Lamar and anyone else who has chosen a side.