Kendrick vs Drake......The Animations
Joseph Watkins: Da Watcha
The hip-hop battle between Kendrick Lamar and Drake will be discussed and analyzed for years to come. There is no question about that. The lyricism, the delivery, the good, the bad, the ugly. For the past few weeks, the digital world witnessed an ongoing rap battle similar to Jiren vs. Goku in Dragonball Super. Depending on which rapper you see as Goku or Jiren, your allegiance may vary, but this battle will forever live as one of the greatest moments in Hip Hop for 2024.
Side Note: This epic portrayal of God-tier rapping initially started with shots at each other. Later on, the shots began targeting others: family members, children, each other’s character, their squad, and the women they were involved with. If you professionally knew one of these artists , you were fodder.....No one was off limits.
My analysis of this epic rap battle is a little different from the hip-hop journalists, bloggers, and professors. My focus, rather than on the artists themselves, is on the creatives who intensified this battle by picking up a tablet, pen, pad, and/or Chromebook and illustrated their thoughts and opinions of the matter through YouTube, Twitter (now known as X), and other social media channels. What they created brought not only levity to this rap feud but also fundamental changes in the way we look at these rap superstars, examining them through their wordplay and animated, comedic delights.
The Animators
NOTL
NOTL – 99k Views [3:59]
Title: JJK Reference
In a stunning animation reminiscent of Jujutsu Kaisen, NOTL has captured the magic of the Anime of the Year (as voted by Crunchyroll), with Kendrick portrayed as Gojo, and Drake as Sukana and the victim of a stomach blow that sends him crashing through buildings, ultimately knocking him out. What follows is a series of drawings demonstrating how the animation process was created, with captions at the beginning of the clip stating, “…credit me” and “stop being a parasite.”
NOTL’s reaction to the rap feud via this animation is both interesting and hilarious. “The anime punch”, with its impactful blow and delayed response, follows the laws of inertia to the fullest. Drake’s abs, apparently generated from the V12 machine (as stated in Kendrick’s verses), lead viewers, in my opinion, to note that while he has abs, he has no solid core and couldn’t “stomach” the punch (or the rap battle)—a Kendrick verse in full view.
The Collective Animation - 180K Views [1:37]
Kendrick Vs. Drake – The Office
Written and voiced by @Acevane & @justin_richburg, these hilarious individuals, known for their comedic voice-overs with iconic characters (DC Justice League Rap Squad was LitAF), took an “Office-like approach” focusing more on Drake and his responses to the other artists who took jabs at him. Playing The Office’s Michael Scott, Drake is armed with the Infinity Gauntlet, with DJ Akademiks as his hype man and comic relief. Here, Drake attacks everyone. From Rick Ross to The Weeknd to ASAP Rocky, Drake makes cracks at their “character” and says “roasted” every two seconds. Kendrick also makes an appearance, countering Drake by saying, “Fvck your Big 3, it’s just Big Me,” making Drake retool his responses toward him. Kendrick also responds with a “M.I.B” reaction as well (you’ll know it when you see it). There was so much mentioned within the 1 minute and 37 seconds that I had to pause at times to catch it all.
“AK”
The biggest joke of the entire video is at the expense of DJ Akademiks; from being the secretary to being a possible pawn in the men’s bathroom, this animated response to this feud brought out the good, the bad, and the ugly in every joke.
Overall, The Collective used Drake’s responses in “Family Matters” and “Push-Ups” to roast him and everyone who bullied him and they didn’t disappoint with this masterpiece.
JK D.Animator – 312K Views [8:14]
DragonFlow Z Ep. 9 - If Kendrick vs Drake was an Anime Battle
JK D. Animator is a household name in the creative space. Known for his renditions of iconic rap songs from major artists in his animated studio, he takes it one step further by adding the legendary anime Dragonball Z to the mix, creating the iconic Dragonflow Z. His approach to the rap feud turned this iconic match-up into the legendary Battle of the Big 3, featuring J. Cole aka King, Kendrick Lamar aka The Big Steppa, and Drake aka The Six God as the protagonists.
For 8 minutes and 17 seconds, what takes place is a shonen-style anime (housed in New Brooklyn-Rock Nation Capital City), in which J. Cole fights Kendrick, Dragonball FighterZ style, with Drake coming in as the hidden-final boss. I was so inspired by the animation that I dusted off my PS4-Dragonball FighterZ and played as Vegeta for about 2 hours. It was that amazing.
What makes this animation exciting is that as soon as the characters fight, we “visually hear” the lyrics paralleling every jab, punch, kick, and special move of each competitor... and then, in the background, millions of miles away, is the Aftermath Akatsuki, featuring Eminem, Snoop, 50 Cent, 2Pac, and the icon himself, Dr. Dre, as the legendary Madara Uchiha.
Avocado Animation – 1.4M [1:31] / 2.8M [0:32]
Kendrick Exposes Drake/Kendrick vs Drake in a Nutshell
Avocado Animation (AA) murdered it with their rendition of this epic rap battle. No music, just anime dialogue, and they delivered. AA approached it from two directions: The first clip, Kendrick vs. Drake in a nutshell, shows Kendrick, with a knife, attempting to stab Drake in a dimly lit room. Outside the room is a nervous, scared, teary-eyed J. Cole, hoping that the horrors taking place don’t happen to him because he can’t bring himself to pick a side and join the fight. What makes this scene even better (worse depending on the artist) is that the animation is referenced from the movie Saving Private Ryan. An excellent scene and a dangerous one... but that’s nothing compared to the sick, twisted anime horror Drake revealed in AA’s second video, Kendrick Exposes Drake.
In the second installment, Drake is cornered by Kendrick. He turns around and, in true criminal mastermind fashion, explains his evil plans in this rap beef. Diabolical? Yes. However, after years of watching anime, it ironically made sense. In this installment, Drake is an over-the-top villain, and in many ways, this version is the most hilarious shyt you will find on the internet.
Animated Shorts
Creators also contributed to the melee as they provided animated shorts that were both hilarious and rewatchable. These shorts were not only dispersed across digital landscapes, it also left a mark with fans as many reposted and commented on the animation on an international scale.
RabsoPetty
Kendrick Got Drake Fans in SHAMBLES rn [412k Views]
Words can’t describe the greatness that the King of the Hood Dub, RabSoPetty, puts into his work. A voice actor and content creator, his combination of comedy, drama, and selected anime skits is what places him here as a part of hip-hop’s rap beef history. Here we have Tanjiro Kamado crying over Drake, asking Kendrick to leave him alone. The voice acting matches the skit perfectly, as his emotion and “tears” tell the story of how Kendrick is beating not only Drake but his fans too. The “LEAVE DRIZZY ALONE...PLEASE!!!” will forever be immortalized as Tanjiro’s head is lowered with tears pouring out, signyfying that his fans are being bullied just as much as their ICON.
YoDeege
Drake After Beefing with Kendrick [449K Views]
In less than 60 seconds, YoDeege had the world dying from laughter with his animated short of Drake injured, and saying the cringiest words ever from his last attempt at going at Kendrick on The Heart Pt. 6: “You wouldn’t be a worthy competitor if I was really a predator....” WTF?! One eye closed, another swollen, left arm bandaged, another in a sling, the emotional and physical toll that Drake went through battling Kendrick is vividly captured as he lays in the hospital bed, defeated and possibly on life support.
Sleepy Ghost
WOP WOP WOP WOP WOP 4.2M Views [Video]/ 535K Views [Short]
Sleepy Ghost, using pixel art animation, created one of the most remarkable and memorable pieces of animation to solidify themselves within this Hip-Hop digital feud. A sky blue background, Kendrick, Knuckles, and Drake are included and for 15 seconds, Kendrick and Knuckles do a two-step, Kendrick then says “WOP (5x)” and “I’m a do my stuff,” while supplying 8-bit punches to Drake, knocking him right out of the frame. In true Kendrick fashion, he hits the piano and quotes that iconic line with the, “.....A Minorrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr”, with Knuckles laughing along. Classic!!!
Final Thoughts
These creatives created a visual account of both Drake and Kendrick’s wordplay, and they didn’t disappoint. With each frame, these designers managed to capture 2024’s iconic hip-hop battle and turn it into animated gems. From exaggerated anime episodes to 8-bit colorful imagery, each contributor crafted an illustrative experience between Kendrick and Drake so beautifully. Additionally, these animators have made hip-hop culture more accessible, relatable, and entertaining to a wider audience, including those within the digital space.
#Shoutout to these creators as they have raised the new standard in visual-video storytelling, making history along the way.
Respect!!!
