Kendrick Lamar Addresses the Backlash over His ‘Control’ Verse, Calls It Ignorance

By: Amanda Anderson-Niles

Kendrick Lamar made a lot of noise in the world of Hip Hop when his verse on Big Sean’s “Control” went viral. In the verse, the Compton emcee gave props to the greats, but then challenged his own peers to step their lyrics up. While it’s not unheard of for a lyricist to display an air of cockiness, Kendrick caused a frenzy because not only did he drop names of his peers, but he also kicked a lyric in which he called himself the “King of New York.” The “King of New York” part prompted several rappers to hit the studio to record their responses, but the rappers named refrained from running to record any diss tracks. According to Wale, they felt honored to be named on the track and they saw the move by Kendrick as a display of respect and real Hip Hop. Unfortunately for Kendrick, not everyone had the same sentiments, and some have mislabeled the verse as a diss. There has even reports suggesting P. Diddy tried to pour a drink on Kendrick at an after party for the VMAs over the “King of New York” claim, but Kendrick says anyone who felt it was disrespectful missed the meaning. He says in his interview with Power 106’s Big Boy’s Neighborhood:

“Honestly I didn’t know there would be so much speculation behind it. I just wanted to rap. Anybody that knows me doing music, I wanna just rap.

“The irony of that line is the people that actually understood it and got it, was the actual kings of New York. You know, me sitting down with them this past week and them understanding that it’s not about actually being the king of whatever coast. It’s about leaving a mark as great as Biggie, as great as ‘Pac.”

Kendrick also called into Hot 97 to talk more about the verse and says the line was his way of paying homage to the greats Biggie and Tupac . He also says his whole point was he wants to be looked at as one of the greats when it’s all said and done. He didn’t mean he’s the “King of New York” literally.

Kendrick made it clear he was disappointed by the backlash from the “King of New York” lyric and even says it made him feel like he has to rap dumber lyrics. He tells Hot 97:

“Man, make me feel like I have to go back down here and dumb down my lyrics a little, man.”

Despite the line not being meant to be disrespectful, Kendrick says he did have a talk with the legends of New York and they immediately understood the meaning from day one. He also says the conversation he had with Jay Z was respectful, and he won’t reveal what was said:

” I mean, that’s classified between me and him. But it was all love, all respect. Same way with Diddy and a few other cats. I don’t want to get into all of that but at the end of the day, I feel as though there are certain cats that are going to take it to the next level and make it a rivalry thing. That’s old school homie. Nobody’s trying to do that. We’re black men out here trying to uplift the culture. My first sold-out show was in New York. I always looked at that place as a place that respected my lyrics and respected the culture and the birthplace of it. I think the ones that really took it out of context was the people we know want to grab an opportunity just off the fact of the hype of the record, rapping — a lot of people think it’s about talent. That’s where they get it wrong, I’m saying I’m the most hungry. I respect the legends of the game. I respect people that have done it before me, people that lost their lives over this. Because of what they laid down, I’m going to try to go that much harder and embrace it and live it. That’s the point of the whole verse and what I was trying to convey behind that verse. All the ignorance behind it, kill that noise. It’ll never be like that again, with two coasts rivals. Not on my behalf.”

Check out the full interview with Hot 97 below: