Big Sean weighed in on the diss aimed at him in an alleged demo of Kendrick Lamar’s 2017 song “Element,” which surfaced online earlier this year. The Detroit-bred rapper seemed to doubt the legitimacy of the track in a chat with TMZ.
“Ain’t no diss,” he told TMZ. “Nah.”
He added, “If it was a diss, it would’ve been a diss. If it was a diss, it would’ve been another diss.”
Months ago, fans questioned if the “Element” leak was truly Kendrick or an AI-generated version of his voice. Kendrick’s longtime collaborator Jay Rock thought the leak was real but provided no definitive answer. The alternate version of “Element,” which used his “Paramedic” beat, pointedly dissed Sean and others.
The song included the following lyrics: “Big Sean keep sneak dissing, I let it slide/I think his false confidence got him inspired/I can’t make ’em respect you, baby, it’s not my job/You’re finally famous for who you date, not how you rhyme (boy)/Cute ass raps, get your puberty up/Then make you a classic album before you come at us/Drake and Meek Mill’s beef might got you gassed up/But I’m a whole ‘nother beast, I’ll really f### you up.”
Kendrick and Sean share a complicated history. For many years, fans assumed the two were at odds. Sean discussed the supposed beef in a 2020 interview with Joe Budden.
“One of the people that, especially after Nipsey [Hussle] died, was important for me to connect with was Kendrick,” Sean told Budden. “Me and Kendrick got a history of songs … Kendrick been in my house before … So, when this whole thing—the whole Big Sean, Kendrick beef was going on, it was something I wish I would’ve spoke up about because there was nothing. And when I say nothing, I’m not even bullshitting.”
Sean also mentioned clearing the air with Kendrick on the song “Deep Reverence.” Sean blamed their issues on “lack of communication and wrong information.”