SoundCentric
Posts
#5: Drake Has Made Every Wrong Move

#5: Drake Has Made Every Wrong Move

Adam Dash
February 17, 2025

Good morning and for one final time for nine months, GO BIRDS! Welcome back to another edition of the SoundCentric newsletter!

This week, we saw Drake drop a new album with PARTYNEXTDOOR, yet another miscalculated move from Toronto’s very own.

Also, make sure to tune in to the podcast this Wednesday as I hosted my first in-person podcast ever with the one and only, Ms. Annabelle Kline.

You could be reading anything in the world right now, and you're here with me. So, I appreciate it.

Let’s get to it!

Deep Dive

What Is Drake Doing?

It’s genuinely impressive at this point.

Since April 13, 2024—the day Drake decided to enter the ring and finally square up against an artist of somewhat equal fame and notoriety by dropping his diss track “Pushups”—he has made the wrong strategic move at every turn.

I have to imagine even Kendrick Lamar has seen some of Drake's recent decisions and sat back thinking, “Damn, he’s really going out like this?” It’s like Rob Pelinka getting a call from Nico Harrison saying the Mavericks want to trade Luka Dončić. On one hand, you’re happy to assist someone in ruining their career. On the other hand, you kind of feel bad for the guy.

It feels like a car crash you can’t look away from. This guy is inventing new ways to dig himself into a hole. From the Spanish singing on his recent collab tape, $ome $exy $ongs 4 U, with PARTYNEXTDOOR, to streaming with Adin Ross, to wearing a hoodie with pre-made bullet hole smoke—Drake just can’t seem to get it right.

Drake making an entrance to the stage walking with bullet holes thru his clothes with smoke coming out of his back. 🥶
— King Jared (@certifiedjared)
5:26 PM • Feb 4, 2025

And let’s get this straight: I am not a Drake hater or a self-described Kendrick glazer. There were many points during their battle this past spring where I felt Drake had the upper hand. I even thought a track like “Taylor Made Freestyle,” which was heavily criticized for its use of AI, was, quite frankly, hilarious.

Drake declared on “The Heart Part 6,” his final Kendrick Lamar diss, “I am a war general, seasoned in preparation / my jacket is covered in medals, honor and decoration,” and he wasn’t wrong.

Yes, he had an extremely public rap battle loss to Pusha T, where we found out he had a secret kid with an adult film star and was planning to use an Adidas campaign to make the announcement about his son. But he also has a few public wins under his belt—most famously, his battle with Meek Mill. That was one of the first major hip-hop beefs to fully leverage the internet, and Drake weaponized memes roasting Meek to bury him even further. That’s why many people didn’t expect Kendrick to win so easily.

Some even thought this would be the moment Kendrick got exposed. Could a guy known for making conceptual albums really go toe-to-toe, bar-for-bar, with a rapper famous for his slick, charismatic punchlines? Sure, Kendrick had already dropped “Control,” the track that helped ignite this feud, but that was most;y him name-dropping. Could he keep that same energy for a full song?

Well, anyone who was asking that question looked stupid. And like I said, I had Drake in the lead after “Pushups” dropped. His first major mistake? Waiting a full week to release “Family Matters” just to shoot a pointless video of the Good Kid, M.A.A.D City van getting crushed while Kendrick was in what I imagine was a dark studio dimly lit by a singular candle writing a horror film with a pen and quill.

We all know what happened next. Drake finally drops “Family Matters,” an incredible record, only to get instantly overshadowed by Kendrick's "Meet the Grahams” less than thirty minutes later. From there, Kendrick dropped the Grammy-sweeping “Not Like Us” and the rest is history.

Drake tried to save face with “The Heart Part 6”, but he sounded like a man who was already defeated. Who even knows if the fake daughter thing was true? Either way, the verdict was out. Kendrick Lamar hit him with the old-school boom bap bip bop bam and danced on his grave.

And since then, it’s only gotten worse for Mr. Graham. On “Family Matters,” he rapped, “Kendrick just opened his mouth / someone go get him a Grammy right now.” The Grammys obliged. We heard a room full of famous people yelling “A-minor” at the top of their lungs. Then Kendrick performed at the Super Bowl, with Serena Williams Crip Walking and Samuel L. Jackson narrating his downfall. Even Will Ferrell just sang “Not Like Us” at SNL’s 50th-anniversary music special.

if i was drake, id walk into the ocean and never return after a bunch of SNL nerds also screamed "a minor" to marty culp and bobbi mohan-culp's cover of kendrick's "not like us"
— Rachel Leishman (@RachelLeishman)
6:25 AM • Feb 15, 2025

Meanwhile, Drake keeps doing cringe-worthy things. He tried to sue his record label and Kendrick for slander—even though he’s the one who accused Kendrick of beating his wife. He’s linked up with annoying streamers. He’s dropped some god-awful music. It’s like he has an embarrassment kink.

This may seem like I’m burying Drake—and hey, maybe I am. But that’s only because I expected more from the so-called war general. Maybe he should hit up J. Cole and take some notes on how to win back his fanbase.

I don’t know what’s next for Drake. Honestly, I think he should take a little hiatus. But one thing’s for sure—no rapper should say Kendrick’s name three times in the mirror.