Musical Rivalries and Diss Tracks

When Kendrick Lamar took the Super Bowl halftime stage in 2025 and had the stadium chanting along to “Not Like Us,” it was clear: Diss tracks had gone stratospheric.

The Kendrick vs. Drake beef echoes legendary rap rivalries like Biggie vs. Tupac and Jay-Z vs. Nas—but diss tracks stretch back through a century of American pop to the Tin Pan Alley era. Vaudeville singer Eddie Cantor, James Brown, John Lennon, Carly Simon, Kool Moe Dee, Lauryn Hill, and countless other artists have all tapped the hitmaking power of a personal grudge.

Step this way and join Chris Molanphy as he traces the history of answer records, diss tracks, and rap beefs that shaped the charts—and the culture.

Get more Hit Parade with Slate Plus! Join for monthly early-access episodes, bonus episodes of "The Bridge," and ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe directly from the Hit Parade show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/hitparadeplus to get access wherever you listen.

Podcast production by Kevin Bendis.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices