J. Cole fires back at Kendrick Lamar diss on surprise mixtape ‘Might Delete Later’: ‘I will humble him’

J. Cole responds to Kendrick Lamar’s “Like That” diss in his new song “7 Minute Drill.”Getty Images

J. Cole fans woke up to a surprise new mixtape Friday — and the rapper’s long-awaited response to Kendrick Lamar dissing him and Drake.

“7 Minute Drill,” the 12th and final song on “Might Delete Later,” finds Cole trolling the varying degrees of success of the albums in Lamar’s discography.

“He still doin’ shows, but fell off like ‘The Simpsons’ / Your first s–t was classic, your last s–t was tragic,” he raps. “Your second s–t put n—as to sleep, but they gassed it / Your third s–t was massive, and that was your prime / I was trailin’ right behind, and I just now hit mine.”

“Your first s–t was classic, your last s–t was tragic,” Cole raps of Lamar’s discography. Getty Images The “Work Out” emcee also takes a jab at Lamar for dropping only “one hard verse like every 30 months.” Samir Hussein/WireImage Cole’s “Might Delete Later” mixtape hit streaming services Friday. Dreamville Records

Cole also takes a jab at Lamar for dropping only “one hard verse like every 30 months” before acknowledging that he still respects his Pulitzer Prize-winning peer.

“If he wasn’t dissin’, then we wouldn’t be discussin’ him,” he raps. “Lord, don’t make me have to smoke this n—a ’cause I f–k with him / But push come to shove, on this mic, I will humble him.”

The beef between Cole, 39, Lamar, 36, and Drake, 37, started last fall when the “Work Out” emcee argued in his song “First Person Shooter” that they are the “big three” artists in rap music.

Lamar previously disagreed with Cole calling them and Drake the “big three” of rap. WireImage “It’s just big me,” Lamar argued on Future and Metro Boomin’s album, “We Don’t Trust You.” future/Instagram

Nearly five months later, Lamar dissed Cole’s assessment, rapping in his verse on Future and Metro Boomin’s “Like That” collaboration, “Motherf–k the ‘big three,’ n—a, it’s just big me.”

While Cole directly fired back at Lamar with “7 Minute Drill,” Drake chose to take a more subtle route.

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The “Take Care” rapper assured fans during a concert last month that he was keeping his “head up high,” though he notably did not mention the “Humble” performer by name.

Drake also addressed the beef, saying, “There’s not another n—a on this Earth that could ever f–k with me.” WireImage “Like That” hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 this week. Getty Images

“I know, no matter what, there’s not another n—a on this Earth that could ever f–k with me,” Drake said onstage at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Fla.

The headline-making feud certainly has paid off; “First Person Shooter” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in October 2023, while “Like That” reached the top of the chart earlier this week.

Only time will tell if “7 Minute Drill” can achieve the same.