DJ Akademiks Explains Why Kanye West Would Beat Drake In “Verzuz”

BY Cole Blake
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DJ Akademiks (24)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - OCTOBER 24: DJ Akademiks attends Complex's inaugural List[ed] event at Zaytinya on October 24, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Bryan Steffy/Getty Images for Complex)
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Despite being a massive fan of Drake, DJ Akademiks says Kanye West has more culture-defining songs to put him over the top.

DJ Akademiks says that Kanye West would be able to beat Drake in a Verzuz matchup. He made the argument during a recent livestream, praising Drake as the “hitmaker of hitmakers,” but admitting Kanye West has some songs that are so influential, they transcend the importance of popularity. 

“Nobody messes with Ye. I don't think nobody from Atlanta messes with Future. I think Drake is just really tough, no matter where, I think he’s a top-five guy for Verzuz. Versatility, he could match whatever style, but he's the hitmaker of hitmakers. The only reason Drake isn't number one is that-- why I have Ye right over Drake for Verzuz, is that Ye has some culture-defining, sound-bending, generational songs that mean more than just 'it's a hit.'"

When Kurrco shared Akademiks' comments on X (formerly Twitter), debate ensued in the replies. "Akademiks finally sobered up enough to realize that Drake makes music for the charts, but Ye makes music for the history books," one fan wrote. Another countered: "Nobody touches Drake in a Verzuz!!! Dead or Alive."

Akademiks' livestream comes after Hit-Boy and Mike Will Made-It faced off on Verzuz, last month, marking the series' first episode since No Limit and Cash Money squared off at ComplexCon, last year. The two iconic producers brought out several guests, including Rae Sremmurd, Big Sean, and Juicy J.

Drake's "Iceman" Album

In other news, Drake is currently at work on his highly anticipated new album, Iceman. Last year, he hosted a series of livestreams to debut new singles from the project. They included "What Did I Miss?", "Which One" featuring Central Cee, and "Dog House" featuring Yeat and Julia Wolf.

The Toronto rapper still hasn't confirmed a release date for the project, but with another snippet leaking over the weekend, it appears to be imminent. Conductor Williams also recently hinted that the album would be dropping "real soon" at an unspecified event.

About The Author
Cole Blake is a current staff writer at HotNewHipHop based out of New York City. He began writing for the site as an intern back in 2018 while finishing his B.A. in Journalism at St. John’s University. In the time since, he’s covered a number of breaking stories for HNHH. These include the ongoing YSL RICO trial, the allegations surrounding Diddy, and much more. His work also extends outside of hip-hop, having written extensively about a myriad of topics including politics, sports, and pop culture. He’s attended several music festivals to provide coverage for the site as well, such as Rolling Loud and Governors Ball.

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