JAŸ-Z Ignites Firestorm After Commenting On Drake & Kendrick Lamar

JAŸ-Z in GQ magazine — Source: Rashid Johnson courtesy of GQ / GQ

With limited-edition vinyls, a headlining Roots Picnic set, and two sold-out shows at Yankee Stadium, the only way left for JAŸ-Z to prove he was back outside was a proper interview. And now he’s delivered with a GQ cover.

The Brooklyn-born rapper is celebrating some momentous anniversaries, but he also spoke on his business dealings, none of which has drawn more ire than his NFL gig, which puts him in charge of choosing the Super Bowl halftime show talent.

His 2025 decision put him at the center of the Drake and Kendrick Lamar beef when the Compton rapper accepted the gig, and Hov maintains he made the right call.

“I chose the guy that was having a monster year. I think it was the right choice. What do I care about them two guys battling? What’s that got to do with me? Have at it. They drag everybody in it, like everyone’s part of this conspiracy to undermine Drake, I guess. But, it’s like, what the f-ck? I’m f-cking JAŸ-Z! [Laughs.] All due respect to him. I’m f-cking Hov. Respectfully. It doesn’t make any sense. It couldn’t be that these guys just don’t like each other.”

He adds that it’s been built up over time, similar to his spat with Nas for which he’s remorseful, adding, “I regret that, I really like Nas.”

As the elder statesman, Hov isn’t sure the beef was healthy for Hip-Hop.

“In this day and age, there’s so much negative stuff that comes with it that you almost wish it didn’t happen. Now, people that like Kendrick, hate Drake. No matter what he makes, no matter what he says, it goes far too. It’s like attack on his character. I don’t know if I love that. I don’t know if it’s helpful to our growth. Where the fallout lands, especially on social media, which takes place every day.”

He continues, “You had the battle and it was fun and then you moved on. Right now, I don’t know if it could stand it with the technology that we have.”

“It’s like trying to tear down the people life,” Hov continues. “It’s like trying to wreck this guy’s marriage or this guy’s relationship with his child…”

He adds that it’s taken the culture a few steps back before admitting that “we’ve just grown so much that I don’t know if battling needs to be part of the culture anymore.”

Another controversy JAŸ addressed was his billionaire status and whether it’s ethical, which he shrugs off.

“I got to give you the honest answer: There’s no tension. I don’t give a f-ck what you say,” JAŸ says with a laugh. “You can believe what you want to believe. And people behave the way they want to behave—it’s not a dollar amount. It’s almost like a cop-out. You get to demonize this group of folks without fixing the actual system that exists, that’s in play. [Money] may enhance it or may cause you to act in a way. But you was going to act like that anyway.”

See social media’s reaction to Hov’s interview below.