Top Dawg Entertainment President Punch has pulled the curtain back on the temperament of the West Coast label a the particular moment Drake and Kendrick Lamar’s rap battle kicked off last year.
During his recent interview with Curtiss King TV, Punch spoke at length for over three-and-a-half hours on a number of topics including managing SZA, advice from LL Cool J, whether or not TDE fans will get a Black Hippy album and more. Of course, one of the most sensational topics Punch touched on was the rap beef between Drake and Kendrick.
In a rare and candid moment, Punch finally addressed the simmering tension between Drake and Kendrick, revealing what went down behind the scenes leading up to their explosive, history-making rap beef. In his initial remarks, Punch confirmed what fans have suspected for years — the subliminal jabs were very real.
“It had been bubbling for a while,” Punch admitted. “You’ll hear a little subliminals.”
He explained that the team usually keeps things quiet, but he reached a point where the weight of legacy outweighs the industry politics.
TDE President Punch says Drake throws so many subliminal shots he can’t keep up — and reveals Kendrick Lamar was laughing after recording the “Like That” verse.
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“But I got to the point now where I’m like, ‘I’m gonna speak on it, if somebody asked me, right,'” he said. “Now it’s about legacy. You know what I’m saying? Like, usually we just let things go how they go…But now it’s like, okay, I speak on certain things.”
Punch also detailed the moment he found out about Kendrick’s “Like That” verse, which has been credited with turning the rap world on its head and setting off the full-blown lyrical war. While he didn’t catch Kendrick in the studio that day, he recalled hearing the track through TDE boss Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith.
“I hit Top, he told me a little bit about the record,” he said. “Then I hit Dot. I’m like, it’s going down,” he recalled. “I hear the record. I’m like, yeah, it’s up. It’s go time now, baby.”
And while the verse shook Hip-Hop to its core, Punch revealed Kendrick’s mood was surprisingly lighthearted—even amused.
“[Kendrick Lamar was] laughing,” he said. “This thing is from Compton, California, bro. You getting shot at, you getting home invasions, you in gang wars. Hey, we talking about music, bro. So it’s like, it’s funny.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Punch confirmed the validity of many Kendrick easter eggs fans have speculated about while also laying out the critical mistakes he believes Drake made by releasing diss tracks, such as “Taylor Made” which he revealed inspired “Not Like Us.”
Watch the full podcast in the video above.