It’s been a dramatic year in Hip-Hop.
Over the past 12 months, fans have seen numerous artists go head-to-head on wax and on social media. Veteran MC’s like Grandmaster Melle Mel and Eminem took their issues to the booth just as the genre celebrated its 50th anniversary. Meanwhile, Drake and Joe Budden revived their years-long beef all because of the rapper-turned-podcaster’s honest thoughts about Drizzy’s new album. Even artists who’ve been dating for years like Megan Thee Stallion and her now-ex boyfriend Pardison Fontaine went from couple goals to sworn enemies.
While some artists have put their issues behind them, others are still beefing as we speak! Check out some of the most outrageous fights that went down in 2023 below.
Blueface vs. Chrisean Rock
Blueface and Chrisean Rock’s relationship declined into a full-blown war that played out on social media. From the minute Rock announced she was pregnant in January, Blueface turned on his former lover and artist. At first, he denied that he was the father of his child and demanded a paternity test. He even dragged Lil Baby into their mess when he accused the Atlanta rapper of trying to get Rock before they ultimately broke up. As their son grew inside Rock’s, the feud continued and escalated upon his birth. Blueface insulted Rock’s parenting skills, and she made a diss track about him. However, they were able to call a truce in order to spend Thanksgiving together, but the peace didn’t last long. Blueface recently took to social media to accuse Rock of leaving their son with a friend while she allegedly went on a date.
Megan Thee Stallion vs. Pardison Fontaine
Megan Thee Stallion and Pardison Fontaine were couple goals to some until things took a turn for the worst. After Pardi stood by Megan’s side during the course of her dramatic criminal case against Tory Lanez, both artists started to show signs of trouble in paradise at the top of 2023. Fans began to get suspicious of Meg and Pardi’s issues when they noticed the Houston rapper unfollowed her boyfriend on Instagram. Pardi had released a poem dedicated to her so fans believed they were working things out. Meg shut down those hopes when she was spotted in Italy hand-in-hand with Belgian soccer player Romelu Lukaku at a wedding for his teammate Lautaro Martinez. It wasn’t until Meg released her new single “Cobra” that she finally alluded to the breakup and seemingly accused Pardi of cheating on her. Pardi fired back with his own diss track “Meg Thee Peerson” in which he addressed her directly. As of now, it doesn’t look like there’s any sign of reconciliation between these two.
YoungBoy Never Broke Again vs. J. Cole
NBA YoungBoy didn’t hold back against J. Cole when he dissed him and other artists this year, but Cole knew how to handle it. Their issues began back in 2021 when YoungBoy Never Broke Again reportedly left Cole hanging in the studio. After Cole connected with Lil Durk on “All My Life” in May, YB took it personally and dissed Cole in his song “F**k The Industry Pt. 2.” Cole didn’t flinch, but fans were craving for a response. They were so thirsty for a reaction that they thought Cole took aim at YB in his verse for Lil Yachty’s “The Secret Recipe,” but it wasn’t until he namedropped YB on Drake’s “First Person Shooter” that fans really knew how he felt about the situation.
“I still wanna get me a song with YB/ Can’t trust everything that you saw on IG,” Cole raps. “Just know if I diss you, I made sure you know that I hit you like I’m on your caller ID.”
Latto vs. Coi Leray
Coi Leray and Latto went through it this past year, but they came out stronger than ever. It all started when Latto debuted her song “Put It On The Floor” at Coachella back in April. On the song, Latto raps, “Smokin’ on that gas, blunt big as Coi Leray/B***hes like to run their mouths but I’m the type to run the fade.” After the lyrics went viral, Coi Leray saw them and lashed out at the Atlanta rapper in a rant on social media. Latto claimed that she meant no disrespect with the bars and even showed love to Leray at Coachella the following week. “Aye Coi by the way, I love that body baby,” Latto said at the end of her set. Later on in an interview, Latto regretted all the beefs she engaged in and asserted that fans fueled them more than anything else.
Birdman vs. Druski
The feud between Birdman and comedian Druski has shown no signs of letting up as we head into 2024. The Cash Money founder has been calling out Druski all year for allegedly swiping the logo design for his faux record label Could Been Records. Birdman has confronted Druski on a few occasions from Instagram Live to the studio. Last month, footage surfaced from Druski’s studio session where Birdman pulled up on him with his crew. The video shows Birdman in a heated conversation before one guy from his entourage tried to swipe Druski’s chain. We’ll see if their issues carry into the new year.
Boosie Badazz vs. Kodak Black
Boosie Badazz has had issues with several artists this year, but his beef with Kodak Black was the most shocking feud. Boosie was a fan of ‘Yak before 2023. His respect for the rapper began to decline after Kodak collaborated with 6ix9ine on a song. Boosie called out the Florida rapper in a lengthy rant on social media, which began a back-and-forth verbal melee between them. Boosie dropped a diss track called “Ungrateful” aimed at Kodak, and also threatened to sue ‘Yak over sampling a song of his without permission. As of now, it doesn’t look like they’re going to patch things up any time soon.
Pusha T vs. Jim Jones
Pusha T finally responded to Jim Jones on wax following months of disrespect. After Jones claimed Pusha was “overrated” in a few interviews, the Clipse rapper apparently had enough and took aim at him in an unreleased Clipse song that made its debut at Pharrell Williams’ first fashion show as Louis Vuitton’s Men’s Creative Director. He didn’t mention Jim by name, but he didn’t have to. The Harlem native laughed off the diss and returned fire on his own “Summer Collection” freestyle. Push hasn’t responded since, but if his beef with Drake has taught fans anything it’s that their issues are nowhere near over yet.
Grandmaster Melle Mel vs. Eminem
Grandmaster Melle Mel and Eminem got into the most disappointing spat of Hip-Hop history. Their issues began after Mel discounted Eminem’s status as one of the greatest MC’s of all time because of his skin color. Months later, Em decided to respond to Mel’s claims on Shady Records’ new artist Ez Mil’s song “Realest.” His razor sharp bars prompted a diss track from Mel but it wasn’t received well among fans. Eventually, Mel deleted the track and apologized for fueling the beef during the 50th anniversary of Hip-Hop.
Drake vs. Joe Budden
Drake and Joe Budden have been frenemies for quite some time. They tried to squash their beef three years ago, but it was resurrected this year amid Budden’s latest criticisms about Drizzy’s new music. Following the release of For All The Dogs, Budden completely trashed the album and claimed J. Cole outshined him on “First Person Shooter.” Drake responded by calling Budden “a failure” in a lengthy comment under DJ Akademiks’ post featuring a clip from the podcast. Drake continued to berate JB on social media, and his latest song “Stories About My Brother” off his For All The Dogs Scary Hours Edition. There’s no telling if Drake will be down to squash this beef anytime soon.
Akademiks vs. Everybody
Speaking of Akademiks, he’s been at the center of several glorified beefs lately. One year after getting backlash from both LL Cool J and Lil Baby, the media personality has found himself involved in numerous heated situations this year beginning with Blueface, who offered to fight him after they traded several disses back-and-forth online. His past transgressions with Yung Miami spilled into 2023 when he recalled the moment Yung Miami called him a gay slur in a recent interview. Things escalated after Ak mentioned Caresha’s best friend Saucy Santana.In a scathing video, Santana questioned why he was dragged into it. Ak told Santana he could pull up to his headquarters in New Jersey, but Santana told him to pull up in the streets. Saucy also threatened to beat Akademiks up and have sex with him, which brought the streamer to tears. Their back-and-forth drew attention from all aspects of Hip-Hop. Even Queen Latifah appeared to chime in with her own thoughts on the matter. They haven’t resolved their issues yet, but hopes for a peaceful solution won’t last as long as Ak continues to beef with City Girls.
