“This generation, they think much more multilayered […] the thought process is completely different.”
LL Cool J, Kendrick Lamar & Drake Arnold Turner/Getty Images for YouTube; Kevin Winter/Getty Images for The Recording Academy; Amy Sussman/Getty Images
Months later, people are still finding things to praise about Kendrick Lamar and Drake’s heavyweight rap feud. LL Cool J recently revealed how much humor he found in the cover art for “Not Like Us.”
He sat down with Ray Daniels Media to give praise to the new generation of artists, and specifically wanted to shout out K. Dot. “It just cracks me up that he put all those signs on homie’s house,” he said of the red dots placed on the Toronto superstar’s home, indicating that 𝓈ℯ𝓍 offenders were located there. “This sh*t is crazy. This ain’t got nothing to do with nothing but its the funniest sh*t in the world. It’s bananas. That kinda thinking, you have to respect that.”
He broadened his praise to this era at large and how they market music and themselves compared to past generations. “This generation, they think much more multilayered. The thinking is far more layered,” he asserted. “The thinking used to be kinda like– back in the days it was like, ‘Okay, you do the song.’ That was it. Then it transitioned to, ‘You do the song and you do the video.’ Now, it transitioned to, ‘You do the song, you do the video, you have a brand, you do a book, you have the movie, you have the music. You monetize it. You have a platform.’ The layering of the thought process is completely different.”
Kendrick Lamar’s execution throughout the battle was lauded by many. From dropping “Euphoria” at 8:24 a.m. Pacific time, to doubling down with “6:16 In LA” before Drake could even respond. Of course, his most tactful move was releasing “Meet The Grahams” less than an hour after Drizzy released “Family Matters,” and then essentially claiming the victory with “Not Like Us” coming out on a Saturday evening.
From there, K. Dot allowed the song, DJs, and TikTok creators to do the work for him. His next move was his Pop Out concert in Los Angeles on Juneteenth, which assembled a slew of West Coast artists, producers, and athletes. The final “nail in the coffin” was the official music video for “Not Like Us,” which was released on July 4.
This wasn’t LL Cool J’s first time discussing the beef. Last month, he claimed that Drake made a “bad choice” engaging with the Compton artist. “Kendrick won the battle. I mean, come on. That’s obvious. That’s a no-brainer,” he told Hot 97’s TT Torrez. “And listen, I like Drake. I love his music, he’s a cool dude. We don’t know each other but I like his music. I’m happy for him and everything. But, you know, Kendrick… that might have been a bad choice.”