J. Cole performs during 2024 Dreamville Music Festival at Dorothea Dix Park on April 7, 2024 in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Photo by Prince Williams/FilmMagic.
J. Cole Responds to Kendrick Lamar and Drake Beef on New Song “Port Antonio”
J. Cole has heard all the noise, and he’s responded with his new song “Port Antonio.”
Months after disappointing the rap game with his sudden exit from a historic rap war, J. Cole has stepped forward to further explain his position. On Wednesday night, the North Carolina spitter responded to the epic Drake and Kendrick Lamar beef with “Port Antonio,” a thoughtful new track he released exclusively through his Instagram account.
For the track, Cole spits over a beat that feels like a slightly ghostlier version of “Dead Presidents” as he ruminates on the feud that changed the game. Here, he’s his typically humble self as he explains just why he dropped out of the conflict, one that seemingly stems from his Drake-assisted track “First Person Shooter”:
“I pulled the plug because I've seen where that was 'bout to go / They wanted blood, they wanted clicks to make they pockets grow / They see this fire in my pen and think I'm dodgin' smoke / I wouldn't have lost a battle, dawg, I woulda lost a bro”
The “bro” Cole is referring to is, of course, Kendrick Lamar, who threw a light jab at Cole on Future & Metro Boomin’s “Like That” earlier this year. While Cole initially responded with “7 Minute Drill,” he pulled the track from streaming services after publicly apologizing to Kendrick at the 2024 Dreamville Festival. The move earned plenty of criticism from just about every corner of the rap world. Of course, Kendrick and Drizzy went right on ahead, with Kendrick scoring an objective knockout punch with his Drake diss, “Not Like Us.”
Either way, it looks like Cole is comfortable with his decision. Check out “Port Antonio” for yourself below:
