“How could you ever right these wrongs/ When you don’t even write your songs?/ But let us all play along/ We all know what niggas for real been waitin’ on/ Push” – Pusha T on Infared (Daytona, 2018)
Man, this rap battle between Drake and Pusha T has shown more character and flair on wax, than in years. It is like revival of character and of disses. The down low and nice talk is over. Pusha T from the Clipse is showing class and higher altitude than the most. He is not afraid to go against Drake, the Cash Money, Young Money rapper, who’s been on top of the game for the last few years.
People and commentators was saying, waiting for a response after the Duppy Freestyle, that Pusha was over with and that Drake had won the thing. However, with the latest track, certainly Drake has to come with something really profound and deep. Not to be upset, but really angry. He has to show a vicious side he hasn’t shown before. And that is not him, Drake is a soft and mellow character, who bitch about woman who doesn’t text quickly enough. Drake isn’t a gangster or a hard-core persona. That isn’t him and he should live with that, just like Donald Glover aka Childish Gambino is doing. It is okay, but don’t try to front on someone like Pusha, he will call you out and he did on ‘The Story of Adidon’.
“I really shouldn’t have given you none of my time/’Cause you older than the nigga you runnin’ behind/Look, holla at me when you multi-million/I told you keep playin’ with my name and I’ma let it ring on you/Like Virginia Williams” – Drake on ‘Duppy Freestyle’ (2018)
That the ‘Duppy Freestyle’ was a positive response to the ‘Infrared’ from the Daytona LP. However, Drake has to come something more unique and show other tools to take down the recent track. As the revelations and the stories are so shoddy, that the meekest turns into their dark-side.
Pusha T has the upper-hand, he has shown even with waiting for three days, that he could answer Drake. It was seemingly like the battles between Nelly and KRS-One, that the one with the biggest machinery would win, in this instance Drake, as he has the Cash Money and the giant fan-base compared to Pusha T and Good Music. However, now it seems like a open playing field. As the exposure and the title is exposing a naked truth that Drake doesn’t want out or has tried to hide. That is really going all out, but that was in response of mocking Pusha T’s fiancé. Clearly, that backfired. Backfired with all cylinders.
Because now you see the significant difference between them, as Pusha goes directly at Drake, he is not attacking Birdman or Lil Wayne, which is still done in passing. As the knowledge of the messed up practices between the artists and the label is well documented at this point. That is why Birdman has to answer all the litigations and the label-mates leaving because of the practices done there.
“We talkin’ character, let me keep with the facts/You are hiding a child, let that boy come home/Deadbeat mothafucka, playin’ border patrol, ooh/Adonis is your son/And he deserves more than an Adidas press run, that’s real/Love that baby, respect that girl/Forget she’s a pornstar, let her be your world, yuugh!” – Pusha T on ‘Story of Adidon’ (2018).
Pusha T answered it all and fired back. This will hard to come back from and answer too. As the reality is the exposure and stories told on Adidon is showing a character side of Drake, that isn’t the heartthrob, but a dead-beat-dad and in this day and age. That is not a good look. It has never been a good look, especially when your supposed to be as wealthy and successful as Drake. That he cannot spend his time with his kid and acknowledge his seed. That is really hurting the pride of Drake and his camp should feel it. But that is because he mocked Pusha for being engaged to someone, like that was a bad thing. By the way, I don’t get why that is bad.
After this sort of affair, what did really ‘Duppy’ have? Right? Not much, other than hype, just like if you would read the bar for bar fight between KRS and Nelly from the early 2000s. It would feel like repeat. What Drake should have known, that Pusha will go all out and not stop at anything. He is no Meek Mill, he is a pure lyricists and that has been known for a long-long time. Proven by the recent joints.
So if he fires back, he has to go deep into the tool shed and really light a fire, but will Drake have it? I don’t know, but to go as hard as this, then your really digging deep. Sort of like Jay Z on ‘Super Ugly’ where he did say:
“Me and the boy A.I. got more in common than just balling and rhyming/Get it? More in Carmen/I came in your Bentley backseat, skeeted in your Jeep/Left condoms on your baby seat” – Jay Z on ‘Super Ugly’ (December 2001).
That is the next level for Drake. However, will he go there and does he dare to go there? Because that is the next step, that is the upgrade from Duppy and to be able to counter Pusha at this point. Peace.