A$AP Rocky Calls Kendrick Lamar vs. Drake Feud Healthy

A$AP Rocky isn’t dodging questions about rap’s biggest feud but he is making it clear he’s not trying to jump in the middle either. In a new cover story with ELLE published September 23, the 36-year-old rapper weighed in on the back-and-forth between Kendrick Lamar and Drake, calling the clash “healthy for hip-hop.”

The tension first sparked after Drake and J. Cole dropped First Person Shooter in November 2023, placing themselves and Kendrick as rap’s “big three.” That line didn’t sit well with Kendrick, who fired back on Future and Metro Boomin’s Like That, leading to months of lyrical warfare. 

Things peaked in May 2024 when Kendrick released Not Like Us, accusing Drake of being both a “pedophile” and a “colonizer.” The track became an anthem, earned Kendrick five Grammys, and dominated his 2025 Super Bowl Halftime Show.

Rocky himself briefly stirred the pot when he tossed a jab at Drake on Future and Metro’s Show of Hands, boasting that he hooked up with Sophie Brussaux, Drake’s ex and the mother of his son, before Drake did. But when Drake clapped back on Family Matters, taking shots at Rocky’s career and even referencing Rihanna, Rocky decided to let it go.

“The battle was between Kendrick and Drake, not Drake and everybody else who might have said something at that time,” Rocky explained, “and that’s mainly why I fell back. I just hate the way it’s turning out with [Drake] suing and all that. What part of the game is that? What type of s— is that? That’s none of my business, I guess.”

While fans are waiting for Rocky’s own musical return, he admits his next album Don’t Be Dumb is taking longer than expected because, as he put it, “life was lifeing.” These days, life for Rocky mostly revolves around family. He and Rihanna, 37, are already parents to sons RZA, born in 2022, and Riot, born in 2023, with a third baby on the way. 

“We don’t plan on having children, but when it happens, you gotta adjust and move with it. I gotta be present for my family, because that’s first,” he said.