Did Kendrick Lamar just pull a “Back to Back” on Big Sean? The internet thinks so.
Last week, the Compton rapper surprised fans with "The Heart Part 4" single, in which he goes in on an unnamed artist (or artists?). Lyrics like: “My fans can't wait for me to son your punk ass/And crush your whole lil shit/I'll Big Pun your punk ass you a scared lil bitch,” were believed to be shots directed at Big Sean. The theory wasn’t too far-fetched, as Sean was previously accused of taking subliminal jabs at Kendrick on “No More Interviews.”
Though there isn’t any concrete evidence that Sean Don is the target, Kendrick’s new track “Humble” is reinforcing the speculation.
In the song, K-Dot repeatedly uses Big Sean’s “lil bitch” ad-lib throughout the chorus. The “lil bitch” phrase (which could also be a flip on Big Sean’s name) was also featured in the second verse of “The Heart Part 4.” The opening verse of “Humble” also includes the lines: “My left stroke just went viral/Right stroke put lil' baby in a spiral.” Of course, many people believe the “left stroke” was “The Heart Part 4,” and the right was “Humble,” which confirms Kendrick is going after the same rapper in both songs.
Some people are also convinced Kendrick was calling out Twenty88 (Sean’s collaborative act with Jhené Aiko) with the lyrics: “"If I kill a nigga, it wont be the Alcohol, I’m the realest nigga after all.”
Is Kendrick referencing Sean’s Aiko-assisted track “I Know,” which includes the line: “Blame it on the alcohol or blame it on sativa”? It’s admittedly a stretch, but definitely a possibility.
Another interesting element to this Sean diss theory involves something outside of the actual “Humble” track. Shortly after the music video was released, Dave Free—the president of Kendrick’s record label TDE—posted a tweet that read: “No interview.”
Is Free simply letting the press know he’s unavailable to discuss the video he co-directed? Or is he making making a reference to Sean’s “No More Interviews” track? There are a lot of questions and plenty of arguments about who Kendrick is actually going after. Though some speculated Drake was also a target, it seems most people are convinced Sean is the victim.
As of now, the internet will have to keep theorizing.
You can check out some of the Twitter reactions below.
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