Most people probably think of Kid Cudi as a goofy stoner, but the rapper tweeted some strong opinions about the state of the rap industry this week. His accusations haven’t gone over well.
It all started Wednesday afternoon, when the rapper and former Comedy Bang! Bang! band leader unleashed a stream of tweets calling out “the fake ones” within the music business. Specifically, he took issue with people who are “talkin top 5” but have “30 people write songs for them.”
It’s worth noting that Cudi used to be signed to Kanye West‘s G.O.O.D. Music label and parted ways with the company after feeling “underused.” The bad blood seemed to be water under the bridge as recently as this spring, though—Cudi was featured on West’s The Life of Pablo and referred to them as “brothers” at the time. But Wednesday’s tweets were definitely singing a different tune:
Twenty minutes later, after Twitter blew up with speculation as to who Cudi may have been calling out, he went ahead and clarified that he was specifically thinking of, “Ye, Drake, whoever.”
It didn’t take long for both artists to respond. West had a show in Tampa, Florida, Wednesday night and addressed Cudi’s comments head-on from the stage:
“Do you know how many people wish they could be signed to G.O.O.D. music, get their life changed, have an opportunity?” West said. “Never forget that. I am so hurt. I feel so disrespected. Kid Cudi, we are two black men in a racist world… I got called names before you, bruh. Why y’all gotta be coming at me? This ain’t the end of the Malcolm X movie. I’m out here fighting for y’all creators, artists, independent thinkers. Don’t never mention my name in a bad manner, none of y’all.”
A fan caught much of the speech and tweeted the video:
https://twitter.com/iDailyRapFacts/status/776253080979603456
Meanwhile, from his show in Oakland, California, Drake took a more poetic approach, changing the lyrics from the O.T. Genesis track “Cut It,” to, “Boy, you getting way too high, you need to Cud-it.”
He also reportedly said to the audience: “I heard boys were talking down today. Shout-out to my brother Kanye West. We both got sold-out shows.”
A fan caught the first remark on video:
Drake's response to Cudi in Oracle Oakland – "You need to Cud-itttt" #Drake #KidCudi pic.twitter.com/rlTWHTim0s
— Dan (@CreevESeven) September 15, 2016
"I heard boys were talking down today. Shoutout to my brother Kanye West. We both got sold out shows." #SummerSixteenTour
— Word On Road (@WordOnRd) September 15, 2016
Cudi tweeted “from here [I’ll] let the music speak,” but knowing all three of these artists, that seems unlikely.
H/T Vulture