Kanye Lists His “12 Rap Kings,” Says Kendrick Lamar is Not Included

There was once a meme about Drake taking on 20 artists at once, soon after Kendrick dissed him.

Kanye is doing kind of the opposite thing; taking shots at Playboi Carti, Jay-Z, Beyoncé and now Kendrick (again). According to Kanye, Kendrick doesn’t even deserve to be in a top 12 rapper slot. He does, however, put Drake in there. Now, is that provocation or facts? Only Ye knows.

Although Ye did go on the record stating he’s jealous (or was jealous) of Drake’s success. Could the same be true for Lamar? It’s a bit of a weird situation as even Kanye seems to have confused metrics for determining influence.

In fact, while he admits Kendrick can out rap most people, he does not deem him worthy of having memorable songs. Baiting-ly, Ye also name dropped Andre 3000, putting him in the same category as Kendrick. With one difference — Andre 3000 actually has songs Kanye can remember; bit of a backhanded compliment? Insult? We’ve lost track.

Aside from his antics though, it is good to get to peep inside Kanye’s brain and not forget the music pioneer he has been. His list, if it doesn’t change with time and convenience, is arguably a solid rap list. And well, if that isn’t entertaining, stay tuned — there will probably be more!