Poor Jagmeet Singh. For such a nice guy, he sure takes more than his share of lumps.
On April 28th, Canadians consigned Singh and his New Democrats to the ash heap, reducing the party to a mere shadow of its former self and removing it from official party status in the House of Commons. The resounding electoral blow led Singh to resign as party leader, a rather inglorious fate for the man who is probably most responsible for the extension of prescription drug and dental benefits to the young and starting out and to the old and checking crowds. Both groups looked the other way, though, when it came time to cast a ballot, caught up as they were in the two-party struggle between the Liberals and the Conservatives.
On Saturday, Jagmeet went to a concert in Toronto, a man of the people, with the people, and out with the people on a weekend night. He claims he went to the concert to take in the talent of the opening act, a rapper named SZA, because apparently Jagmeet likes his rappers.
But the problems started when Singh remained for the featured artist, which is what 100 out of 100 people would do after shilling out for the tickets, which wouldn’t have been cheap, since the main event was Los Angeles rapper Kendrick Lamar. And since Lamar is pretty much one of the Hip Hop giants, nobody would ever have cause to criticize Jagmeet about his choice of concerts to attend.
Except Drake.
The Toronto rapper, once known by his given name of Aubrey Drake Graham, is in an existential and toxic struggle with Lamar, one that has featured a series of back-and-forth diss tracks accusing each other of all sorts of criminal and sketchy activity involving marital infidelity, marital abuse, pedophilia, children out of wedlock, child exploitation, child trafficking, and all sorts of unsavoury stuff.
Drake as much as called Jagmeet a goof for going to the concert on his social media, although he didn’t have anything to say about the thousands of other folks in attendance. No, it was Singh, and Singh alone, singled out because he had apparently betrayed the tender sensibilities of a hip-hop star who demands fealty from his fellow Canadians. Singled out because of being a federal politician, and one easily recognizable by the turban he wears as a practicing Sikh.
All this is the most recent manifestation of the latest war in the Hip Hop industry, an industry already chock full of violence and murder. It’s an association made fast by the often violent lyrics contained in the genre itself, and the fact that criminal gangs often use the music as a calling card of sorts, often primping in front of the cameras of their own social media with the music playing in the background, flashing their gang signs and weaponry, all the better to be noticed and respected on the streets. That is, of course, before they’re murdered by somebody just like them.
A long time ago, the two, Drake and Kendrick, got along. I think Kendrick even opened for Drake at one point, Drake being the headliner, and Lamar the up-and-comer. But now, some fifteen years later, the two are more or less equals in terms of fame, fortune, and notoriety, and it’s not aged well in an industry that seems to not like the idea of sharing success.
On a collaboration with Drake a couple of years back, some rapper named JCole — where on earth do these sillies get their names from? — had the temerity to suggest that he, Drake, and Kendrick were what he called “The Big Three” of Hip Hop, which to me comes across as a bit arrogant for a guy I’ve never heard of and would have never heard of had it not been for the spat between the other two.
That didn’t go down well with Lamar, who didn’t like the idea of sharing the rapper version of Mount Rushmore with the other two artists. In a track he released soon after — they release tracks, not albums, although sometimes they might drop an entire album — Lamar said, using language that only Black men are allowed to use, that there “Ain’t no Big Three. There’s only Big Me.”
And that was it, as the two rappers went head-to-head dissing one another with released tracks that would be met with response tracks often late the same day. It’s like the entire body of their creativity was taken over by a blood feud that insinuated itself into every song they would release moving forward. And as went the artists, so too went the fans, taking sides, almost like the gangs on the streets of Compton, the part of Los Angeles Lamar calls home.
A summer ago an armed intruder made an attempt to gain access to the grounds of Drake’s Bridlewood mansion in one of the toniest parts of Toronto. A security guard was seriously wounded after being shot. One has to wonder if this is an example of the fandom getting all caught up in the fight and looking for their moment of fame as the the person who could settle the feud once and for all.
People still remember the wild times of Hip Hop, made famous by the murders of artists like Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur, both gunned down in the prime of their youth and joining the ranks of some fifty or so other rappers murdered for being too close to the lyrics of their songs.
You don’t get this shit with Country.
The so-called knock-out blow in the feud came with the release of a Kendrick track entitled Not Like Us where the rapper, accompanied by other prominent people who call Compton home, danced and sang his way to ridiculing Drake. Two things made this a defining moment for the Canadian artist. One was the presence of his friend DeMar DeRozan, a former Toronto Raptor but now Sacramento King, who was pals with Drake since the rapper was the cheerleader-in-chief for the Raptors. Secondly, and probably even more humiliating, Lamar was named as the main performer for the Super Bowl Halftime Show, where that tune “Not Like Us” was featured, and where thousands of people present chanted the specific line from the song that kneecapped Drake.
That song was also performed at this weekend’s Toronto concerts, and I wonder if Jagmeet Singh took any great delight in dissing Drake by loving on Lamar and his diss tracks.
What surprises me more than anything was the fact that, once he was made aware of Drake’s displeasure, Singh posted on his own social media an apology, that he was indeed at the concert, but not to see Lamar, but only to see SZA, whoever that is. Ya, right Jag.
The thing is, Jagmeet, is that you’re totally allowed to go to that concert or any other without feeling like you have to apologize to a spoiled brat who can’t seem to understand that people are not beholden to a single performer, but rather can like other performers, and even attend their live concerts. Fans are not required to take a blood-oath to any artist, so Drake getting all pissy out of jealousy is him getting a little beneath himself, or actually a lot beneath himself. You would think fame, riches, and a luxury lifestyle would insulate somebody from over-the-top criticism, but I guess not. Insecure people are always going to be insecure people, and it doesn’t seem that the diamonds, Rolexes, limos, mansions, and all the Henny you can drink matters very much.
Aubrey, it might be time for you to consider growing up. Yes, you’re Canadian, and yes we’re proud of you, like we are for any of our own who go out and do great things. But being wrapped up in a childish spat diminishes your attractiveness, and we don’t all have to go along with that simply because you’re Canadian.
If Kendrick Lamar wants to be an asshole, let him. One in a room is plenty enough for the most of us, and we’re usually quick to identify and reject such people. But rather than let us decide for ourselves, you come along and decide that another asshole would be just the ticket.
So long as you remain as thin-skinned as you obviously are, Aubrey, Kendrick is going to eat your lunch.
And Jagmeet? You have absolutely nothing to apologize for. The guy probably didn’t even vote for you.
NEWSMAGRENFREW 