Dr. Dre Reveals Which Drake Bars Angered Him During Kendrick Lamar Feud

D-R-E is not a Drake fan.

Dr. Dre represents the lineage of West Coast hip hop. He has held down California since the 1980s, and Kendrick Lamar is one of his greatest proteges. Lamar has made good on the hopes Dre had heading in to the 2010s and more. Given how much Lamar has done to prolong Dre’s legacy with younger listeners, it makes sense that the doctor would be on his side during the Drake battle. But it was one talking point in particular that placed Dr. Dre firmly in the anti-Drake camp.

Dre spoke on the battle during a recent appearance on the Unusual Suspects podcast. He told hosts Kenya Barris and Malcolm Gladwell was behind Kendrick Lamar from day one. He kept quiet during the early stages of the battle. It was when Drake spoke on Lamar’s family, though, that Dr. Dre felt the need to publicly give Lamar his endorsement. “I don’t want to get negative,” he explained. “My whole sh*t is about being positive and moving forward and all that sh*t.” He felt a rapper talking about another man’s family was too far, though. “The fact I heard Drake say something negative about Kendrick’s wife and his kids, that made me say, ‘Ah, adios!.'”

Dr. Dre Didn’t Respect Drake Mentioning Family

Not only did Dr. Dre endorse Lamar, but he introduced “Not Like Us” during the iconic “Pop Out” show on Juneteenth. The concert was a celebration of all things West Coast, and the producer made it clear he was proud of his protege. “I love that record,” he said, when asked about “Not Like Us.” Dr. Dre may seem like a minor player in the Lamar vs Drake battle. He was actually present during the formative years of both artists, though. Lamar and Drake are believed to have contributed songwriting to sessions for the hallowed D-R-E album Detox during the 2000s and early 2010s.

In the book The Song Machine: Inside the Hit Factory, author John Seabrook claims Drake was brought in to contribute verses. Drake previously alluded to writing for Dr. Dre when he was “around 19.” Lamar, of course, has collaborated with Dre multiple times over the years. He even appeared on Compton, the album that came out instead of Detox, in 2015. It’s safe to assume Dre is going to watching with a smile when Lamar takes the Super Bowl stage in February.