Live shows aren't often a part of hip-hop's GOAT conversation, but then again, not many live shows are as meaningful as Kendrick Lamar's "The Pop Out" in Los Angeles on Juneteenth. Moreover, media outlets, critics, and fans alike all rejoiced in reacting to the West Coast spectacle, with The Breakfast Club reopening a conversation on K.Dot's dominance and skill level in the game. Specifically for Charlamagne Tha God, he believes that the Compton lyricist fully claimed the crown with this concert. Not only did he attribute this to his talent, catalog, and overall artistic impact, but also for making this performance a victory lap of sorts that continued to pressure the competition.
"Kendrick set the tone," Charlamagne Tha God remarked during his virtual hosting of The Breakfast Club. "He let us know that this was a victory lap, and he came there to blood and crip-walk on his enemy's head-top. And to me, the show wasn't about Drake as much it was about Kendrick Lamar becoming the undisputed heavyweight champion of hip-hop. Like, when it comes to this new generation we've been watching over the last 15 years, Kendrick is the king of hip-hop, and it's not even close. And I'm not talking about charts, I'm not talking about streaming records, I'm not talking about, you know, pop songs, singing on songs. I'm talking about bars, rap, hip-hop, culture. Kendrick wears that crown, and it's not even close."
The Breakfast Club Speaks On Kendrick Lamar's "Pop Out"
"I agree," DJ Envy chimed in after Charlamagne Tha God's Kendrick Lamar comments. "It was bigger than the Drake beef and all of that. Just what he did for L.A. and the fact that he unified so many different hoods, so many different communities, so many different gangs. Had them all on one stage and what he did for hip-hop last night was simply amazing."
Meanwhile, a lot of folks wonder how other rappers must be feeling amid all this, especially those that involved themselves in the Kendrick Lamar and Drake beef. Drizzy himself is the subject of much fan speculation, and there's also The Game's absence to consider. Is J. Cole feeling survivor's guilt right now? Perhaps time will tell...
