What is the origin of the beef between Drake and Kendrick Lamar?

Exchanging insults is part and parcel of rap culture, but there’s been a very public face-off between two rap stars that has taken centerstage in recent weeks. Drake and Kendrick Lamar have been dissing each other in the past month by exchanging hostile verses, and the recent conflict actually began with the words of a third rapper, J. Cole. What is the origin of the beef between Drake and Kendrick Lamar? Late last year, Cole collaborated with Drake on a track called “First Person Shooter” which was featured on the Canadian’s eighth album “For All the Dogs”. The song became Cole’s first and Drake’s 13th number one hit, tying him with Michael Jackson as the male solo artist having the most number one singles. J. Cole suggested on the Hot 100 No.1 song that he, Drake, and Lamar were the top three in the current world of hip-hop. “Love when they argue the hardest MC/ Is it K-Dot? Is it Aubrey? Or me?/ We the big three like we started a league,” Cole sang. This was the line that launched a thousand ships, as it didn’t sit well at all with the only Pulitzer-Prize-winning rapper. READ ALSO: Tupac and Snoop...