J. Cole took the stage at Dreamville Music Festival in North Carolina on Sunday, April 7, where he used part of his set to address regret about dissing Kendrick Lamar in his recent song, “7 Minute Drill.” He had initially dropped it after Lamar’s verse on Future and Metro Boomin’s “Like That.”
“It’s one part of that sh*t that makes me feel like, man that’s the lamest sh*t I did in my f*ckin’ life, right?” J. Cole said. “And I know this is not what a lot of people want to hear… I just want to come up here and publicly be like, bruh, that was the lamest, goofiest sh*t. I say all that to say it made me feel like 10 years ago when I was moving incorrectly. And I pray that god will line me back up on my purpose and on my path.”
J. Cole then went on to point out just how talented Lamar actually is — and talked to the crowd directly who felt the same. “I want to say right now tonight, how many people think Kendrick Lamar is one of the greatest motherf*cker’s to ever touch a f*ckin’ microphone?” he added. “Dreamville, y’all love Kendrick Lamar, correct? As do I.”
The tension between J. Cole and Lamar, according to Variety, first started when Drake and J. Cole collaborated on “First Person Shooter” — and included a line calling him out in the process. Unlike J. Cole, in the days following Lamar making waves with “Like That,” Drake has not really responded.
Check out a clip of J. Cole feeling bad and praising Kendrick Lamar here.