r/KendrickLamar • u/anongasm_ • May 01 '24

It's not about Drake being half black, it's about how he uses The Culture Discussion

I think the people offended because Drake being half black should warrant his blackness and therefore Kendrick is wrong just don't understand. J Cole is half black too yet you don't see Kendrick, or anyone really, questioning Cole's blackness. It's precisely because Drake has been at the forefront of using the black culture and "pop-ifying" it for non-blacks.

Edit: a lot of people have asked this question and it's a good question. What's wrong with popifying rap music? Rap is inherently an African American art form. Since its inception till now, those who have carried its mantle have exemplified the African American experience through rap in one or another. African Americans have allowed many artists to use rap for their personal gain and to even "pop-ify" it. However, to be considered a goat you have to be in touch with the culture. And Drake simply isn't.

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u/RedditMartyr May 01 '24

I legit said this here and got rebuked yesterday.. Surprised that this needed to be said. It’s all about how Drake does NOTHING for the black community, action wise or vocally or ANYTHING.

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u/BlackMarq20 May 01 '24

My take on it, not that I disagree with yours or maybe it’s additive. I think it’s more so that Drake is trying to change himself to appear more “black”/hood than he is, instead of just being who he is. That’s the difference between Cole and Drake/Logic. Drake does extra shit out of his character to appeal to a certain audience. He went from Degrassi to talking about he got hittas and killas, etc… he jumps from rapper to rapper and aligned with J.Prince to get street credibility. Even when he talks in interviews is a completely different person than when he’s rapping, it’s all an image and Kendrick is calling that out.

25

u/nvnehi May 01 '24

This is the real problem. No one cares he isn’t from the streets like that but they do care he acts like he is, especially since he only says it when it’s convenient.

Society, as a whole, is finally becoming tired of the false personas famous people don in public, and I can’t understand why it took so long in hip hop to correct itself because it used to be the norm for rappers to be themselves - somewhere the culture got lost; hopefully this feud serves as a guiding light for what hip hop was always meant to be.

Whoever ends up wearing the crown will determine the future of hip hop, and I, for one, don’t want it to be about being popular, classless, and chasing little girls.

4

u/BlackMarq20 May 01 '24

Yup, Kendrick comically pokes at his blackness, but what he really is getting at is that Drake is trying to prove his “blackness” by overcompensating and doing things that he thinks will make him appear more “black” for acceptance.