Drake made sure to feed every single one of his fans via three new albums, of which HABIBTI and MAID OF HONOUR are more melodic and romantic offerings. But ICEMAN is where he takes the gloves off and goes hard against his opposition, including his parent label Universal Music Group (UMG).
On the track "B's On The Table" with assistance from 21 Savage, Drizzy raps the following line: "I'm fighting The Man, not suing the rapper, you boys is not listening." This references Drake's defamation lawsuit against UMG over "Not Like Us," the diss track from Kendrick Lamar from two years ago.
With this lyric, he's painting the major record company as "The Man," the symbol of institutional power and dominance he's now fighting against. The Boy is making the factual clarification that his lawsuit is against the record label, not against Kendrick for releasing the track. This line also might be a sly reference to "fighting the man" in person, wanting his confrontation with Lamar. By saying he's not "suing the rapper," the Toronto superstar could be making the distinction between what his professional career moves indicate and what his actual in-person energy dictates.
Why Did Drake Drop Three Albums?
This conflict with UMG might also tie into Drake's triple release of ICEMAN, HABIBTI, and MAID OF HONOUR. Many fans assume he dropped all three albums to get out of his label deal, as OVO released these full-lengths under Republic Records, a division of UMG. Now, the OVO mogul might go independent or seek a home elsewhere. Either way, it's clear the relationship with the parent label is at a point of agreed-upon severance, if not an outright conflictive exit.
We will have to see if his appeal over the UMG lawsuit's dismissal is successful or if the court already sealed its fate. Whether lyrically or in court, Aubrey Graham is making it clear he's not backing down yet.
This specific line on "B's On The Table" joins many more post-beef reflections and indignations on ICEMAN. As fans scour through the tracklist to find more, they gain more ideas of where he might go next.
