Kendrick Lamar has arguably the best verse of 2024 so far. When the rapper joined Future and Metro Boomin on his new song “Like That” in March, it served as a defibrillator for the rap game. The deadly verses he unleashed on the world shook up the entire genre. A possible three-way feud between Kendrick, J. Cole and Drake over K-Dot Bars gives the genre a burst of energy not seen in 2023.
Cultural influences aside, Kendrick’s lyrics effectively straddle the line between subconscious and purposeful. The song appears on Metro and Future’s We Don’t Trust You album, and Kendrick added just enough details so that fans knew exactly who Kung Fu Kenny was talking about without naming names.
Breaking down Kendrick Lamar’s “Like That” verse
Kendrick did this by constantly playing Drake and J. Cole’s joint song “First Person Shooter” as well as Drizzy’s latest album “For All the Dogs.”
“Okay, let’s do it, it’s time for him to prove he’s a problem/N***as cliquin’ up, but can’t be legal, no 40 water, tell ’em,” Kendrick raps in the opening verse.
This line alone perfectly embodies the multiple layers of meaning Kendrick brings to each bar. On one hand, Kendrick noted that Cole and Drake seemed to be “united” and teaming up against each other. K-Dot says their partnership will never reach the level it did in 1991 when E-40 joined forces with B-Legit and The Click.
However, “cliquin’ up” could also be about Cole and Drake’s joint song “First Person Shooter” and refer to their guns making a clicking sound as they run out of ammunition. Additionally, the line “40 water” could be read as a dig at Drake’s longtime producer Noah “40” Shebib, who is known for using what he calls “underwater” effects on beats.
While it’s this layered attention to detail that makes Kendrick’s “Like That” verse so effective, he quickly drops the pun to ensure his point comes through loud and clear in the following bars.
“Fuck sneaky dissin’, first-person shooter, I wish they had three switches,” is the bar that caught the attention of rap fans. This part of the song is when everyone realizes Kendrick is targeting Cole and Drizzy. While previous lyrics were full of metaphors and clever puns, Kendrick decided to seize the moment and just scream “first-person shooter.” He wants everyone to know who he’s talking about, not just rap scholars ready to dissect his every word.
Kendrick continued the trend, simply rapping, “Muthaf**k big three, n***a, it’s just big me/N***a, bum, what? I really like that.”
Read more: Metro Boomin insists new album will hit No. 1 no matter what
Kendrick won’t use threats of violence to make his point
Kendrick’s verses are also powerful because he doesn’t rely on threats of violence to get his message across. Violence permeates the diss track during the drill scene, and it’s all the more impactful to hear Kendrick rely on his lyrical talents as an emcee to take aim at his foes over past rap beefs.
“Your best stuff is lightweight/N***a, Prince outlived Mike Jack,” Kendrick raps at one point, referring to Drake’s current tie with the King of Pop for the most solo artists First place. Drake is very proud of the competition he is having with “Mike Jack.” In the “First Person Shooter” video, Drizzy wears sequined gloves in honor of Jackson. Kendrick simply said that Prince outlived Michael Jackson, implying that these titles don’t tell the whole story when it comes to life and death.
Drake seems to have heard Kendrick’s verse
While rap fans could spend hours dissecting the clever verses of Kendrick’s “Like That,” it appears to have shaken Drake to his core. After hearing these comments, Drizzy seemed to subconsciously hit back at Kendrick via a cryptic text on Instagram. While fans are waiting with bated breath to see if “The Boy” will pop into the studio for an official response, it takes a lot to get Drake’s attention these days, so it’s safe to say we’ve got this one messages.
The best part of “Like That,” however, is the conversation it sparks among rap fans. What would a confrontation between Kendelk, Cole and Drizzy look like? Is Future involved? Is Future and Metro Boomin’s “We Don’t Trust You” an album specifically designed to mock Drake? When all is said and done, who will emerge victorious? All of these questions consume the hearts and minds of rap fans and lead to some pretty heated back-and-forth discussions. While only time will tell what happens next, no one has the rap world talking like Kendrick Lamar in 2024.
READ MORE: Drake vs. the World – Everyone who allegedly had issues with the rapper
Here’s a look back at Metro Boomin and Future’s collaboration with Kendrick Lamar, “Like That.”
