Bill Maher took aim at Kendrick Lamar’s ongoing feud with Drake, likening the California rapper’s relentless diss tracks to the obsessive behavior in the 1992 psychological thriller Single White Female.
During the February 14 episode of Real Time with Bill Maher, the HBO host used his “New Rules” segment to criticize Lamar for releasing multiple diss tracks aimed at Drake, including a high-profile Super Bowl LIX halftime show performance that featured a rendition of “Not Like Us.”
Maher argued that Lamar’s persistent shots at the Toronto-born rapper had gone beyond traditional rap beef.
“New Rule. Kendrick Lamar has to get over Drake. Six diss tracks and a halftime performance? That’s not a beef, that’s a remake of Single White Female,” Maher said.
Single White Female, a cult classic thriller starring Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh, tells the story of a woman who develops a dangerous obsession with her roommate, mimicking her look and behavior before turning violent.
Maher’s comparison suggested Lamar’s approach to the rivalry had become excessive.
The comedian continued his critique with a few music history references, dismissing the notion that legends in other genres behaved similarly.
“Frank Sinatra made 1,400 records, and not one was hating on Tony Bennett,” Maher said. “Stevie Wonder never made an album called ‘Ray Charles Can Kiss My Black Ass.’”
Lamar’s halftime performance, which drew a record-breaking 133.5 million viewers according to Apple Music, cemented “Not Like Us” as a cultural moment.
The track had already earned him five Grammy Awards, making it one of the defining hits of his career.
Maher also jabbed at Drake’s Canadian roots while making a reference to former President Donald Trump’s past remarks about Canada.
“I just think it’s sad when a rapper from California can’t get along with a rapper from our 51st state,” he quipped, referring to Trump’s prior suggestions that Canada should be absorbed into the U.S. and his repeated mischaracterization of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as a “governor.”