Music

Baby Keem on Kendrick Lamar and Drake's Charts-Dominating Beef: 'It Felt Like a Sport'

Baby Keem recently enlisted his cousin, Kendrick Lamar, for his 'Ca$ino' album.

Three images of celebrities: Baby Keem performing with a mic, Kendrick Lamar in a tuxedo, and Drake in a colorful jacket at an event.
Images via Getty/Jason Koerner, Getty/Francis Specker/CBS, & Getty/Cole Burston

Baby Keem viewed his cousin Kendrick Lamar’s charts-dominating feud with Drake as a sport-like competition, the Ca$ino artist reveals in a new interview.

Speaking with Ross Scarano for the New York Times, as seen here, the Grammy winner (and seven-time nominee) also underscored the level of confidence he felt amid the much-discussed back-and-forth between the two superstars.

“For me, it felt like a sport,” Keem told the Times. “I was so confident that sometimes you forget to be proud.”

That level of confidence extends to Keem’s own work, thanks in large part to him being able to count Kendrick as a fan, “all cousins aside.” As Keem explained, knowing that the person he considers “the greatest artist of all time” supports his work has instilled in him “the most confidence in the world.”

Ca$ino, Keem’s second studio album, was released in February via pgLang and Columbia, ultimately bowing at No. 4 in its opening week on the Billboard 200 chart. Kendrick is featured on the track “Good Flirts,” which last month got an official video directed by Renell Medrano.

Drake, meanwhile, is widely believed to be nearing the release of Iceman, his first new solo full-length since 2023’s For All the Dogs. There’s still no official release date, but the teases have been consistent as of late, leading fans to believe that a drop could be imminent. The album is one of numerous hotly anticipated albums set for a 2026 unveiling.

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