Drake Releases Statement On Rollingstone Controversy

With February 13th being the 5th anniversary of the phenomenal mixtape So Far Gone, it was pretty awkward that Drake also had to go through one of his toughest media days. Drake courted controversy after he denied making degrading comments about Kanye’s Yeezus in the latest Rollingstone issue and also tweeting about how the magazine took the cover from him last minute and gave it to late Phillip Seymour Hoffman (he later deleted the tweets but they can be found here).

Kendrick Lamar Shakes Up The Super Bowl With Bold Drake Diss And Surprise Guests

Kendrick Lamar's Super Bowl 59 halftime performance was nothing short of legendary, leaving fans buzzing with surprise cameos and bold moments that took his long-running feud with Drake to new heights. Kicking off with an unreleased song snippet and followed by “Squabble Up” from his latest album GNX, Kendrick immediately set the tone for a game-changing performance. Fans eagerly waited to see if Kendrick would play his diss track Not Like Us, especially with Drake's ongoing lawsuit against him and his label for defamation and harassment. Lamar's performance included an unexpected appearance by SZA and a quirky cameo from Serena Williams, along with Samuel L. Jackson’s comedic interruptions, all building the suspense around the Drake drama. In the middle of his performance, Kendrick turned up the heat, looking straight into the camera and directly addressing Drake with his famous lyrics, “I heard you like them young," as fans held their breath. Despite the tension, Kendrick censored himself when it came time to call Drake a "certified lover boy" and avoided saying “pedophile,” which had been widely speculated. Social media lit up with mixed reactions, with some fans mocking the performance as a "mid mashup" and others noting the intense hostility toward Drake. With the hashtag #KendrickBowl trending, it’s clear that Kendrick’s performance was a cultural moment that pushed boundaries—but has he gone too far, or is this just another chapter in hip-hop history? Only time will tell, and Drake has yet to respond.

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Drizzy has now released a detailed statement about the episode and clarified any misconceptions that fans may have developed over the situation. Read below.

With today being the 5th anniversary of So Far Gone I figured it’s fitting to return to it’s place of its origin in order to clear the air about an extremely emotional day. I completely support and agree with Rolling Stone replacing me on the cover with the legendary Phillip Seymour Hoffman. He is one of the most incredible actors of our time and a man that deserves to be immortalized by this publication. My frustration stemmed from the way it was executed. The circumstances at hand are completely justifiable (on the magazines behalf), but I was not able to salvage my story or my photos and that was devastating. They ran the issue without giving me a choice to be in it or not. I would have waited until it was my time because I understand the magnitude of the cover they chose but I just wasn’t given that option and that made me feel violated. I apologize to anybody who took my initial comments out of context because in no way would I ever want to offend the Hoffman family or see myself as bigger than that moment. I am still the same person. Today I was forced out of my character and felt the need to react swiftly. These days are the worst ones. Waking up after a great night in the studio and it’s your day to be picked apart. After dwelling on it for a few hours or days you will come to the conclusion that you brought it on yourself almost every time. So here I am having that moment. I once again apologize to everybody who took my cover comments the wrong way. I respect Rolling Stone for being willing to give a kid from Toronto a shot at the cover. I guess this is a day to learn and grow.
Sincerely,
The Boy