Drake Responds to All the Subliminal Shots and Disses

 So many subliminal disses have been hurled his way recently, it’s hard to keep track. Pusha T, Ludacris and Future have all had something to say about him. While most didn’t address him by name in their lyrics, Common, rap’s mild-mannered elder statesman, has admits he is referring to the young Canadian on the song “Sweet” when he raps: “Singing all around me man la la la/You ain’t no motherfucking Frank Sinatra.”

When asked about all of his alleged nemeses, Drake tries his hand at diplomacy. “I’ve got no issues with him,” he says of Future, who was upset that Drake didn’t appear in the video for his single “Tony Montana.” “I’m happy I got on the song.” Pusha T, who once cryptically rhymed that “the swag don’t match the sweaters,” gets off easy, too. “I’ve been really open about my love for the Clipse,” he says. “I don’t know, maybe that guy is bored.” Ludacris, who was accused of stealing Big Sean and Drake’s hashtag flow, also receives a halfhearted smackdown. “That’s a case of somebody trying to use my marketing money to get things going again for themselves. That didn’t affect my day, my month, my year. I didn’t take any of that seriously.”

But when it comes to tossing off disses, Drake’s not above delivering his own veiled swipes these days. On “Dreams Money Can Buy,” he surveys the hip-hop landscape and decides he’s sorely disappointed by what he sees. “Lately it went from top five to remain- ing five,” he rhymes. “My favorite rappers either lost it or they ain’t alive.” He stops short of mentioning names, but doesn’t back away from his declaration. “I wasn’t in rap when I was idolizing a lot of these people,” he says. “But times change. People don’t sound the way they used to. It’s inevitable. Someday Drake won’t sound the way he used to. I’ll do anything in my power to still sound relevant, but unfortunately Drake may not. And yes,” he says with a chuckle, “I referred to myself in the third person.”