Memphis Bleek started the legendary battle between Jay-Z and Nas. He took shots at Nas on his 2000 single "My Mind Right," and the subsequent back-and-forth led to his label boss getting in the mix. It's a little apocryphal (Jay and Nas already issues), but it proves that Bleek knows what he's talking about when it comes to diss records. Bleek took time away from promoting his upcoming podcast to discuss the Drake vs. Kendrick Lamar battle. He made it very clear that he was backing the kid from Compton.
Bleek got on X (formerly Twitter) shortly after the release of Lamar's devious diss "Euphoria." He not only praised Lamar's lyricism, but he took people who didn't appreciate the song to task for not being real rap fans. "I can't believe it's people who really think that K. Dot record [trash]," he wrote. "Glad I'm not one of them cause he walked on that joint."
Memphis Bleek Clowned Lamar's Critics
Memphis Bleek and Kendrick Lamar have never crossed paths, but the former has been sampled on multiple Lamar songs. "LOYALTY," K. Dot's 2017 duet with Rihanna, samples the Roc-A-Fella posse cut "Get Your Mind Right Mami." We have to take it much further back for Lamar's "The Heart Part 2," which dropped in 2010 and samples the same exact Bleek collab from 2000.
Bleek isn't the only Roc-A-Fella member who has backed Lamar in the Drake battle. Dame Dash, Bleek's former label boss, recently detailed the ways in which "Euphoria" dismantled Drizzy. "As a man, I thought that that was the most logical, grown man, battle rap, sh*t that you could say," Dash claimed. "A father really enjoys hearing about how fly it is to be a dad. F*ck all that dumb sh*t. If you ain't a dad it don't matter." Kanye West has also chosen Lamar's side, and even recorded a remix to the diss song that kicked this whole battle off.
Jay-Z is the glaring Roc-A-Fella name who has yet to weigh in on which rapper he prefers. Given that Hov has praised and worked with both Lamar and Drake in the past, though, he's probably being smart by staying out of it.
