Source: Jeff Kravitz / Getty
The year was 2013.
GOOD Music’s then-golden boy Big Sean was gearing up for the summer release of his sophomore album,
Hall of Fame. In an idea that he thought would help garner up some buzz, the
Finally Famous emcee released a street single titled “Control” just a mere two weeks ahead of the LP’s release that featured two rap contemporaries: the elusive Jay Electronica and the
m.A.A.d man of rap himself, Kendrick Lamar.
What followed was a scathing display of lyrical prowess by the latter emcee that made
everyone forget anything that either Electronica or Sean was saying — it was Big Sean’s song at that! — by dropping bar-for-bar disses at every one of his contemporaries at the time, including the aforementioned two on the track itself. No one was safe: J. Cole, Drake, A$AP Rocky, Tyler, The Creator, Meek Mill, Big K.R.I.T., Wale, Pusha T and even the late Mac Miller (who was alive at the time) all received a wake-up call from their biggest competitor in the game.
The move not only made Sean scrap the single from his album altogether — “sampling issues” was the official reason given — but it cemented K. Dot as the lyrical leader of his generation.
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It now appears that old habits haven’t in fact died hard following a viral leak today (September 7) of yet another diss track, this time aimed once again at Big Sean, Jay Electronica and for added measure New York rapper French Montana. Drake and Meek Mill are also mentioned, but more in passing rather than as a direct call-out.
Then again, things might not be what they seem given the new era we’re in where
AI-generated songs are masterfully deceitful. Take a listen below and tell us what you think:
RELATED: WATCH: Kendrick Lamar Uses Deep Fake to Transform Into Kanye, Nipsey Hussle
According to the Internet, the song in question is allegedly an early version of “ELEMENT” from his Pulitzer Prize-winning 2017 album,
DAMN. Although not officially released as a single, the fan-favorite album cut surprisingly charted on the Billboard Hot 100 and even peaked in the top 20 at #16. The song also received an official music video.
The leaked verse sees Lamar being way less subliminal compared to the version we’ve grown to love for the past six years. From calling Electronica a “dead prophet” for being silent during his big night at the 2015 GRAMMYs to calling out “sneak dissing” from both Montana and Sean, the 38-second clip was more than enough to ignite a spark for debate amongst rap fans. If it does in fact prove to be AI-generated, well, we might have to have one
serious conversation about the future of hip-hop and technology — this one embodies his flow, cadence and everything!
Let us know what you think of Kendrick Lamar’s alleged leaked diss track aimed at Big Sean, Jay Electronica and French Montana, and take a look below to see what the Internet had to say:
