How Drake’s Comeback Has Been Going Since The Kendrick Lamar Battle Ended

Kendrick Lamar and Drake’s battle started with Lamar sending a shot at Drake and J. Cole on Future and Metro Boomin’s song “Like That,” which ended with the Toronto rapper’s “The Heart Part 6.” In between those songs, Lamar released the diss track, “Not Like Us,” a song that broke Billboard records, won five Grammys, and was a radio mainstay.

Drake eventually sued the parent company of their respective labels, Universal Music Group, for defamation over “Not Like Us,” since Lamar calls him a pedophile in the song. The common belief among many, based on what they argued on social media, is that Lamar won the battle, an opinion that Drake’s fans rally against.

However, considering Drake has been one of the biggest rappers on the planet for well over a decade, it’s heavily predicted that he’ll reclaim his position as rap’s It guy by dropping new songs and not only dominating the charts, but the general hip-hop conversation. Well, those releases have arrived, and Drake’s return is officially under way.

Drake’s Songs After The Battle Ended

In Drake’s song “The Heart Part 6,” the rapper made it clear that he was tired of the back-and-forth with Lamar and wanted to move on. Then shortly after that, he told his fans on Instagram Stories that “good times and summer vibes” were coming, meaning he’d be getting back to making fun, lighthearted singles.

The first to come was “U My Everything,” a collaboration with Sexyy Red on her mixtape In Sexyy We Trust. Drake rapped over Metro Boomin’s diss song, “BBL Drizzy,” toward the end of his verse, and the song spent 17 weeks on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart, peaking at number 44 — which isn’t a strong showing considering Drake’s usual chart dominance.

Next, Drake did a parody of Plain White T’s 2006 hit “Hey There Delilah” with comedian and social media personality Snowd4y called “Wah Gwan Delilah,” which seemed to baffle those who wanted Drake to diss Lamar again with aggressive, in-your-face rhymes.

Two songs on Camila Cabello’s album C,XOXO followed, “Hot Uptown” and “Uuugly.” The former peaked at number 62 on Billboard’s Hot 100, the latter at number 6 on Billboard’s Hot R&B Songs chart, per Chart Data. Drake then appeared on Gordo’s Diamante album on “Healing,” and “Sideways,” the second song debuting at number 9 on Billboard’s Bubbling Under 100.

What Fans Are Saying About Drake’s Return

Then, on February 14, 2025, Drake teamed up with PartyNextDoor for their collaboration album, $ome $exy $ongs 4 U and scored a hit with “Nokia,” which landed at the number 2 spot on Billboard’s Hot 100, while spending a whopping 25 weeks on the chart.

Drake was heard on “What Did I Miss” after that, which came in July and debuted at number 2 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Next, his song “Which One,” with UK rapper Central Cee, debuted at number 23, and both cuts are said to be the first singles off Drake’s upcoming Iceman album.

Ever since the Lamar battle ended, there has been plenty of social media talk about “Nokia’s” success, and some took it as a sign that Drake was back to his hit-making ways, and that Lamar didn’t affect him. However, when people saw the low chart position of “Which One,” they said it was directly related to the GNX rapper.

Clearly, Drake has nothing left to prove. His career is stacked with chart-toppers, critical acclaim, and praise from hip-hop’s most respected voices. The real measure of how the battle impacted him will come with Iceman — still awaiting a release date.