In a clip caught by Whooping feet on Twitter, the Dreamville artist spoke on his bravado and confidence in his music. While he doesn’t feel like the greatest to ever do it in his private life, he did stand on his ability to convince people of such praise.

“I say I’m the best on songs. Ask me in real life: Do I think I’m the best rapper alive? Bro, it’s a n***a named Black Thought that exists,” Cole remarked. “It’s a n***a named Lupe Fiasco that exists. It’s n***as that, on any given day, even my peers. A Drake or a Kendrick [Lamar]. I know on any given day, I can show up to the studio and give these n***as 80. But I know they can show up on any day in the studio and give me 80. And I might only have 30. If I’m taking on a rap persona when I’m rapping, that’s how I like to rap. And guess what? Sometimes I hit the mark and I’ll spit a verse that really might have you believing that s**t.

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J. Cole’s Thoughts On The GOAT Debate

“But if you ask me in real life, do I walk around like I’m the best rapper alive? No, n***a,” J. Cole continued regarding his artistry. “Like I’m the best ever? No. But when I put on that motherf***ing cape, that’s how I try to attack s**t. Have there been things and moments and verses where I’m writing this s**t and I’m like, ‘I know n***as not f***ing with this’? Absolutely.

“But in reality, do I walk around this Earth like there’s no n***a better than me?” Cole continued. “In real life? Like I can’t get in the studio with Black Thought and he just gives me 90. And I’m sitting there like, ‘I got 25 for you.’ Any one of these amazing rappers. People, ’cause they don’t know me for real, they hear me say it in a verse so much when I have on the cape. It sounds convincing because I’m really doing that s**t that’s gon’ have a n***a like, ‘Man, he think…’ No, you think!”

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The post J. Cole Admits He Lies About Feeling Like The GOAT In His Music appeared first on HotNewHipHop.

Because for those who actually witnessed Kendrick’s ascent—from his days of K.Dot to Section.80 to good kid, m.A.A.d city to projects like To Pimp a Butterfly, and DAMN.—the revisionism will always feel a little hollow. Cultural memory doesn’t evaporate that easily, especially when the work itself continues to hold up.

Of course, the recent feud between Kendrick and Drake has only intensified the urge to re-litigate both artists’ legacies in real time. The two will probably remain tethered to that moment for years, whether through songs like “Not Like Us” echoing through arenas or fans weaponizing the beef in comment sections and concert crowds alike. 

And then there are Ebro’s recent comments about Drake’s catalog and how many classics he really has under his belt. If a rap beef didn’t effectively rewrite his narrative, then maybe we wouldn’t be looking at a triumphant run throughout the 2010s as harshly. But that entire saga between Kendrick and Drake, as entertaining as it may be, ultimately has very little to do with the question of catalog. Because when we talk about bodies of work, Kendrick has long operated in rarefied air.

Outside of the Drake and Kendrick beef, a recent conversation across social media comparing Future’s catalog to Kendrick’s makes this all the more bizarre: who has more classics?

Read More: Kendrick Lamar’s “Untitled Unmastered” Quietly Grounded “To Pimp A Butterfly’s” Genius

Watch The Latest HotNewHipHop Video Essay Below

On the surface, these conversations are random and, oftentimes, nonsensical. At the height of Verzuz, Twitter began debating a hypothetical battle between NBA Youngboy and Jay-Z. It makes for great conversation at the end of the day, but it also urges us to think a bit deeper about what a catalog actually looks like.  But in the case of Future and Kendrick Lamar, the comparison of catalogs ultimately doesn’t boil down to preference but approach.

At face value, it might come across as blasphemous. Future is the king of toxicity, a mainstay in strip clubs and on the radio, while Kendrick Lamar is the enigmatic rapper who puts intention behind each word and every appearance. They both play their roles in the landscape of rap differently, yet not entirely in separate universes. We can’t look back at the 2010s—or even the 2020s at this point—without recognizing how important they are, especially since rap fans are the furthest thing from monolithic.

The conversation gets less ridiculous when you start breaking down their respective catalogs and what are considered unanimous classics within them. Let’s examine these more closely: the three-peat mixtape run of Monster, Beast Mode, and 56 Nights led to the release of DS2—that’s four in less than a year. And then let’s throw in both self-titled and HNDRXX, which were released a week apart. In total, that’s six classic projects in Future’s repertoire.

Kendrick, however, never moved at the same pace as Future, and it has resulted in significantly different outcomes. Section.80 is a mainstay for his core audience and a definitive project of the blog era, but whether it’s a classic—as in a quintessential listen for hip-hop heads—is debatable. What isn’t debatable are albums like good kid, m.A.A.d city, To Pimp a Butterfly, and DAMN. It’s too early to include any project either artist has released this decade, but outside of GNX, neither Future nor Kendrick has created projects that have lived up to their respective 2010s runs in quite the same way. Kendrick has four classics, if we’re being generous, but three albums are unanimously revered.

Trying to put either artist against the other will ultimately boil down to a quality-versus-quantity debate, which is the wrong way to frame it. Because at their core, these careers are about quantity versus curation. Future captured lightning in a bottle throughout his career. Even his worst projects contain incredibly strong moments. On the other hand, Kendrick practically vanishes after an album cycle is over—perhaps even more so these days. Yet every album he puts out, even recent ones like Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, remains in conversation in one way or another.

Read More: “The Life Of Pablo” Marked The Old Kanye In His Final Form

A Case For Future

But that’s what’s most interesting. It’s not that Future’s success hinged on his celebrity, but that his relationship with Ciara—especially in its aftermath—turned him into a whole different breed of artist, one who reinvented himself emotionally and sonically. Between 2014 and 2017, Future turned trap into the emotional language of mainstream rap, transforming toxicity and nihilism into a pop-level aesthetic. His influence has been pervasive in that sense, from the music that bred countless artists who followed his blueprint to the memes and attitudes that have shaped the modern landscape of dating. He taught detachment on songs like “Real Sisters.” He masked heartbreak through deflection on “Throw Away,” and “Codeine Crazy” is the type of self-medicating that saw him unravel in his own isolation. Alongside producers like Metro Boomin, Zaytoven, and Southside, Future added the emotional depth that made this era particularly inspiring. 

The creative avalanche only cemented him as an omnipresent force. If people were surprised that he penned “Drunk in Love,” reuniting with Jay-Z on DJ Khaled’s “I Got the Keys” in 2016 only reinforced that his emotive delivery had become the heartbeat of the moment. It’s the same reason he and Drake locked in together on What A Time To Be Alive in 2015, months after the release of DS2, and If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late. As much as Drake had the rap game under his thumb at that point, Future was setting the emotional temperature in a way that influenced the streets as much as the mainstream—he was shaping the sound of the moment in real time. An album like DS2 only showcased that he couldn’t miss.

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A Case For Kendrick Lamar

The same year Future punctuated the mainstream with DS2 and What A Time To Be Alive, Kendrick Lamar delivered what can easily be considered a definitive body of work in his catalog—To Pimp a Butterfly. Coming off a classic debut that can be viewed in the same vein as Illmatic, we could’ve easily witnessed a rising star succumb to the pressures of a sophomore major-label release. And yet To Pimp a Butterfly underlined Kendrick Lamar as an album artist more than anything else—he could disappear from the public eye and return with something that takes time to digest. In many ways, it fell victim to the same “instant classic” narrative that plagues many albums, but over a decade later, it’s a project that still stands on its own two feet—sonically, lyrically, and thematically.

But that’s the thing about Kendrick’s catalog and the “classics” attached to his name—they simultaneously function as narrative arcs, social commentary, and layered musical compositions. Kendrick operates under an almost entirely different philosophy, where each song isn’t necessarily a standalone but part of a broader concept. good kid, m.A.A.d city brought us through the streets of Compton through his eyes. To Pimp A Butterfly grappled with survivor’s remorse with a politically sharp edge, and DAMN. explored the duality of virtue and vice—faith and doubt, pride and humility. With each of these albums, Kendrick delivered bodies of work that demand time and front-to-back listens. To Pimp A Butterfly often faces flak because it doesn’t necessarily have an obvious “hit record,” even though songs like “King Kunta” and “Alright” remain algorithmic and political mainstays to this day. But a song like “i” truly didn’t receive the credit it deserved until it was contextualized within the album’s tracklist.

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Are We Counting Classics The Same Way For Both Artists?

Kendrick’s songs often gain power in sequence, compared to someone like Future, whose model emphasizes individual songs dominating the cultural bloodstream. Where Future’s greatness might be atmospheric, Kendrick’s greatness is architectural. So when we start comparing who has more classics, it gets ridiculous because the models we use to determine them are apples and oranges. Future’s strength was volume—he churned out classics one after another in a way that honestly felt reminiscent of Lil Wayne’s mixtape run in its impact. Quality matched quantity, and the replay value within those bodies of work can’t be contested over a decade later. That era was Future’s era, and those projects—whether mixtapes like Monster or albums like HNDRXX—feel just as fresh in 2026 as they did when they were first released. What makes the “classics” conversation even more muddied is the technicality of mixtape versus album distinctions. But let’s be real—the mixtapes Future dropped functioned like albums.

Frankly, we’re not looking for the same type of instant gratification from Kendrick Lamar. It’s always been a slow burn. Picking bars apart, analyzing samples, spotting Easter eggs that connect back to earlier albums—essentially turning the experience into a puzzle. Each album felt as ambitious as the last without necessarily circling back to old ideas, sounds, or approaches. He pushed his pen as much as he pushed production. Not everyone could close out an album with a makeshift Tupac interview without it feeling completely corny. There was always risk—and reward—in every single one of them.

But ultimately, the question remains: are we counting classics the same way for both artists? We could spend the next decade analyzing every single moment of Kendrick Lamar’s career and elevating them to a point of genius, but Future’s catalog can’t be denied of its genius either—even if it isn’t in the same metrics.

The reality is that Future probably won’t win a Pulitzer Prize or have his work acknowledged by the National Recording Registry. That’s largely because the system that determines artistic greatness often prioritizes intentional artistry over instinctual brilliance. Kendrick’s artistic intentions are partially why he’s been a critical darling for as long as he has—after a Grammy snub for his major-label debut, the Recording Academy has practically overcompensated to the point where he’s now the most-decorated rapper in Grammy history. That isn’t to say Kendrick doesn’t possess instinctual brilliance, but how many reference songs have leaked that show us the evolution of a beloved final product? Sure, the same could be said about Future. But institutions like the Grammys might not fully recognize his level of cultural significance. Future’s relentless output helped define the moods of an era. Through his understanding of melodies and textures, he mastered the art of making music that people live inside of. That’s another form of greatness—one just as rare as Kendrick’s penmanship.

It’s not that there isn’t merit to the Future vs. Kendrick debate, but the more important conversation is what actually determines a classic. Kendrick and Future represent two distinct paths to building both a legacy and a catalog. Future became the architect of sound and emotion, adding a breath of masculinity to a “sad-boy” rap era. In a sense, he approached it with a formula he knew would work—but it never felt formulaic. On the other hand, Kendrick Lamar became the mastermind behind some of rap’s most ambitious albums, and the rewards of that ambition transcended hip-hop entirely. The number of classics, ultimately, doesn’t matter as much as the impact. The debate falls apart the moment you realize they were never playing the same game. Kendrick Lamar documents the psyche of a generation. Future defines its mood. And both forms of greatness are the reason the 2010s sounded the way they did.

Read More: Jack Harlow’s “Monica” Problem Isn’t Just The Music

The post Does Future Really Have More Classics Than Kendrick Lamar? appeared first on HotNewHipHop.

During a recent stop on Cardi’s “Little Miss Drama” tour, she had a bit of a mishap while performing the “Bartier Cardi” track with 21 Savage (sans Savage). Here’s the part she rapped: “Cardi took your man, you upset / Cardi got rich, they upset / Cardi put the p***y on Offset / Cartier, Cardi B brain on Offset.”

As caught by No Jumper on Instagram, the Bronx superstar looked visibly disgusted when she accidentally name-dropped the former Migo in the chorus. It was for the third line in the aforementioned post-chorus. Still, she kept the show going after putting on a cringed face, and it serves as the latest example of Cardi B throwing shade at Offset onstage.

The last time was when she changed some lyrics while performing her Megan Thee Stallion collab “Bongos.” “My BD is a Migo / B***h, your BD is a zero,” the original goes. But during a tour stop, Cardi changed the lyric to “My BD is a b***h” instead.

Read More: Young Thug Started To Give Enough Of A F*ck On “Slime Season 3”

What Happened To Cardi B And Offset?

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For those unaware, Cardi B and Offset’s tumultuous breakup presumably occurred due to rampant cheating allegations against him and just growing apart as a couple. While they coparent Kulture, Wave, and Blossom, they have dragged each other through the mud on social media amid a nasty divorce process.

However, it’s possible that the cheating allegations did not motivate the split. Rather, both sides have spoken about moving on from the relationship and discussing it over time. Nevertheless, it’s clear that there’s still bad blood between them and that irreconcilable differences now plague their dynamic.

Cardi B’s Offset relationship influenced Stefon Diggs gossip as well, as folks allegedly spotted Diggs with the Georgia rapper’s ex amid rumors of the football player’s now-confirmed breakup with Cardi. Whether or not more onstage antics go down, it’s clear that their bond will not heal up anytime soon.

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The post Cardi B Visibly Cringes After Accidentally Saying Offset’s Name Onstage appeared first on HotNewHipHop.

For those unaware, rumors surfaced repeatedly over the past few years that ScHoolboy’s alleged warnings led to J. Cole’s apology to Kendrick for dissing him. That apology went down at the 2024 Dreamville Fest. But as it turns out, Cole himself denies that this ever happened.

“That’s a complete lie,” he said in reference to those rumors, as caught by Kurrco on Twitter. “Ask ScHoolboy Q. That’s just Internet, that’s a straight lie. There’s many of those. Many half-truths, and many way more straight lies. Like, the ScHoolboy Q s**t is a straight lie. Of course, shout out to ScHoolboy Q. He not gon’ come out and just say it on his own. But when you get a chance, ask him. It’s a straight-up lie.”

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Why Did J. Cole Apologize To Kendrick Lamar?

For those who subscribed to this theory, a question remains: Why did J. Cole apologize to Kendrick Lamar? The former has been very open in recent interviews about addressing this, speaking to how the “7 Minute Drill” diss he launched did not really motivate him. In fact, he said he felt spiritually disturbed and burdened, and that the apology set him free.

“I’m like, alright, this is what I’ll do,” Cole told Cam’ron of his Might Delete Later diss on Cam’s Talk With Flee show. “Let me say just enough to where it looks like I said something. Everything I’m saying to him, I know and he know it’s all survivable. I’m not hitting him with no fatal blows. Mind you, it’s a decision made out of non-clarity. But through that non-clarity, it seemed like my best option. The second it comes out, you created a dividing line where you’re forcing the world to pick a side. If they f**k with you, they’ve got to slander him. They’re taking what you said and giving it gas and giving it light,” he added. “And then my thought becomes, ‘Oh f**k, I done f***ed up.'”

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The post J. Cole Addresses Rumor That ScHoolboy Q Intervened In Drake & Kendrick Lamar Battle appeared first on HotNewHipHop.

For those unaware, the collab landed on Drizzy’s For All The Dogs album. Cole had a bar on it about the trio of rappers being the “Big Three.” Then, K.Dot dissed both MCs on “Like That” with Future and Metro Boomin some months later, proclaiming that “it’s just big me.”

The Dreamville’s artist’s new comments on the track reveal that the song was originally meant to be between the Toronto superstar and his Compton rival. Things didn’t pan out, and now fans have more alleged info to scrutinize as their assessments of their dynamics continue to evolve.

“I’m not gon’ say we were all supposed to be [on it],” J. Cole expressed regarding Drake, Kendrick Lamar, and the “First Person Shooter” track, as caught by Kurrco on Twitter. “How it came to me was, before that beat ever made it to me, I think Drake wanted that to be a him and Dot song. I think that’s what it was. My interpretation is like, maybe when it wasn’t moving fast enough or he wasn’t getting the response he wanted, maybe he was like, ‘Let me hit Cole.’ ‘Cause I think Boi-1da was pushing, like, ‘Bro, you need to hit Cole.’

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J. Cole & Drake Collabs

“I never looked at that song like it was going to be all of us,” Cole continued. “I thought it was me and Drake. And I just had the beat. It was nothing on it. And I felt mad pressure. ‘Cause I wanted to come through for him. He showed up at Dreamville Fest the year before that. I wanted to come through for him. I had to write that verse several times. So that’s a half-truth, kind of. But there’s no part of us making that song where it’s like, ‘Yo, Kendrick was supposed to be on here.‘ Nah. I just got a beat for Drake, I wanted to come through for him on his album. The clock was running, and winding down, boom. And I came through.”

Apart from “First Person Shooter,” J. Cole and Drake worked together on tracks like “Evil Ways,” “In The Morning,” and “Jodeci Freestyle.” Cole and Kendrick Lamar have their “Black Friday” remixes plus cuts like “Forbidden Fruit,” whereas Kendrick and The Boy haven’t added to their “Poetic Justice” and “Buried Alive” history since “F**kin’ Problems” with A$AP Rocky and 2 Chainz from 2013.

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The post J. Cole Claims “First Person Shooter” Was Originally A Drake & Kendrick Lamar Collab appeared first on HotNewHipHop.

Release Date: March 27, 2026

Genre: Hip-Hop

Album: N/A

Quotable Lyrics from The Lox

All the feelings changing from loving right into hate
Oh, it’s hard to take it when friends turn into fake
Oh, you’re like a stranger now
Didn’t see it going that way
I thought that things would never change, never change, never change

The post Never Change – Song by The Lox featuring Jaheim & Trent Shelton appeared first on HotNewHipHop.

As most of you remember, Cole backed out of the battle after dropping and then deleting “7 Minute Drill.” He then decided it was right to apologize onstage during the 2024 edition of his Dreamville Festival.

But what many of you may not know is that J. Cole was working on getting Drake and Kendrick to perform that same year.

In his sit-down with Carmelo Anthony’s podcast, 7PM in Brooklyn, he confirmed the rumors to be true. He explains that this was the goal prior to Lamar’s appearance on “Like That.” Of course, that didn’t wind up happening, and ultimately, it was for the best.

J. Cole even says as much in the clip caught by our social media page. “Had [Drake] come, I would’ve felt more pressure to be onstage representing that energy.”

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J. Cole On Kendrick Lamar Apology

The North Carolina hitmaker also reveals that Drake told him personally. “‘Yo, bro. I didn’t want to come down there and put you in a situation on that stage and say some sh*t that you would have to stand behind.'”

It seems like that gave J. Cole the chance to speak on how he truly felt about the beef and how he didn’t want to engage further. In his interview with Nadeska Alexis, he explained that it was a stressful and emotional time for him after dissing Kendrick.

“[The idea] hit me about an hour before [I went out on stage at Dreamville Fest]. In that moment, I felt lifted and I got light and I got excited. Because the two or three days before that, I was stressing the f*ck out. I felt like I had misrepresented myself. I was giving life to division and to negative storylines about somebody that I f*ck with and I got love for and care about. That sh*t had me feeling terrible. I was like, ‘This sh*t don’t feel right’ … I felt miserable about it.”

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The post J. Cole Confirms Dreamville Fest Rumor About Drake & Kendrick Lamar appeared first on HotNewHipHop.

Release Date: March 27, 2026

Genre: Hip-Hop

Album: N/A

The post Million Dollar Mansion/Promoting Violence – Songs by Che appeared first on HotNewHipHop.

As a result, it can affect how people who haven’t listened to an album to be swayed from the jump. But that’s just the reality and right now, Yeat’s ADL is facing harsh criticism early on.

As you can see below, many feel the project is underwhelming, especially considering all of the hype leading up to it.

Overall, it seems the most redeeming quality amongst the plethora of negative reviews is the production. But even then, there are some listeners complaining about the mixing and mastering. “Called his old stuff ‘slop’ and dropped this like production was the best he’s done but it just doesn’t have his unique sound anymore,” one let down fan writes. “Lowkey disappointed dangerous summer was so good I thought this was gonna be a step up.”

A majority of the mediocre responses rate Yeat’s ADL around a five or six at best, with the low end reaching two. But like we said, we live in a world where instant reactions can make or break how an album is perceived for a while.

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Who Is Featured On ADL?

Unfortunately for the Oregon star, it seems like this studio effort will need a lot more time to settle. But that’s only if these folks are willing to give the record the chance to do so.

ADL, also known as A Dangerous Lyfe/A Dangerous Love, is a double album that hit streaming platforms last night. It’s his first true LP since 2024’s LYFESTYLE but follows up his 2025 EP-like project DANGEROUS SUMMER.

Yeat did bring together some impressive talent for this 21-song set including Elton John (via a sample), NBA YoungBoy, Don Toliver, 070 Shake, Joji, Kid Cudi, Swizz Beatz and more.

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The post The Poor Reviews For Yeat’s “ADL” Are Piling Up appeared first on HotNewHipHop.

Release Date: March 27, 2026

Genre: Hip-Hop

Tracklist of Boiling Point

1. Boiling Point Intro (with Birdman)
2. Lenny Kravitz (with Mannie Fresh)
3. Drop The Location
4. Pay Me
5. You Mad (with Swizz Beatz)
6. Juvie Beverly (with B.G., Birdman, and Roi “Chip” Anthony)
7. Hot Boy Summer (with B.G., Jacquees, and Trombone Shorty)
8. Interlude – Doze Off
9. The Reunion (with B.G. and Birdman)
10. Hot of the Hottest (with Young Juve)
11. B.B.B. – Original (with Genesisthegawd)
12. Meph Town
13. Pull Up (with Birdman, Lil Bryan, and GoodFella)
14. Fuego (with DJ Khaled)
15. WYM (Woah) [with Akeem Ali]
16. Neva Go Broke
17. One More Round (with 2’Live Bre)
18. He Gone (with Mannie Fresh and Dee-1)
19. Yea Yea Yea Yeah (with Timbaland)
20. B.B.B. (with Megan Thee Stallion)

Juvenile’s Boiling Point singles were the “B.B.B.” remix with Megan Thee Stallion, “One More Round” with 2’Live Bre, “He Gone” with Mannie Fresh and Dee-1, and “Hot Boy Summer” with B.G., Jacquees, and Trombone Shorty.

The post Boiling Point – Album by Juvenile appeared first on HotNewHipHop.