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Kendrick Lamar's highly anticipated Juneteenth concert unfolded without one notable presence — The Game. The fans were quick to react to the rapper's absence at the event.
On June 19, 2024, Kendrick Lamar's The Pop Out — Ken and Friends was a resounding success, captivating audiences with his electrifying performance and star-studded guest appearances. However, one notable absence that didn't go unnoticed was of The Game. Fans quickly took to X, offering theories and reactions, with many humorously referencing his past defense of fellow rapper Drake. As on tweeted,
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"Great show from Kendrick 👌🏾👌🏾 I picked up on a few things: the game wasn’t there 😂 Rick Ross was. The pac source awards homage, and Dave free produced the show lmao," another wrote.
"The Game being left out of these major west coast moments should be a lesson for a lot of folks about the energy they put in the world, man," one wrote.
Numerous individuals on X engaged in light-hearted humor, speculating why Game was absent from the show. At the same time, some fans expressed genuine concern and curiosity regarding his unexpected nonappearance.
"The Game watching the Kendrick Lamar concert," another wrote.
"Game seeing Kendrick invite every west coast mfer but him," netizen on X.
"Hey, how come The Game wasn't on stage?" the other wrote.
"Kendrick and The Game after the show," another tweeted on X.
"THE GAME PROBABLY FEELING MAD LEFT OUT RIGHT NOW," the other on X.
"Kendrick invited everyone except The Game 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥," netizen on X.
"Game, when he tried to walk into the Forum," the other tweeted on X.
The reactions can be attributed to several factors. In April 2024, during the height of the beef between Lamar and Drake, Game allegedly supported Drake by posting a story featuring one of Drake's songs.
Additionally, some of Game's fans argue that he is frequently excluded from significant West Coast events and moments, which may have fueled further concern and discussion about his absence from Kendrick Lamar's show.
Why was The Game not present at Kendrick Lamar's Pop Out concert?
On April 17, 2024, Game posted a video of himself in a now-deleted Instagram post, seemingly enjoying Drake's track Energy released in 2015. The lyrics that captured the attention of onlookers, and which Game also quoted in a caption, read below —
"I got enemies, got a lot of enemies / Got a lot of people tryna drain me of my energy / They tryna take the wave from a n**ga / F*ckin' with the kid and pray for your n**ga," Drake rapped.
The post garnered significant attention, especially when Drake liked the post. Many suggested under the comment that if Game went against Compton native artists. Another reason why the post received so much attention could be that, around the same time, Drake released his diss track Push Ups (Drop and Give Me 50), in which he took a subtle jab at Kendrick.
On the other hand, The Game was snubbed from the West Coast celebration Super Bowl Halftime Show in 2022. In the podcast I Am Athlete, the artist shared that he wasn't invited because he is "not a safe artist."
"The real reason I wasn’t on the Super Bowl is because I’m not a ‘safe’ artist. You don’t know what Game gon’ do when he gets up there. They went with the ‘safe’ artists. Snoop Dogg was there because Snoop Dogg is safe and a legend. My grandmother knows Snoop! And so do my children," Game claimed.
Not being invited to the Super Bowl and not attending Kendrick's concert are related because both events are of the hip-hop community. This could be why The Game didn't attend the concert. However, whether he chose not to attend or wasn't invited remains unconfirmed. Neither Game nor Kendrick has commented on the matter. However, Kendrick concluded the event, suggesting that his only focus for this concert was to bring everyone together.
Kendrick Lamar's The Pop Out — Ken and Friends, which kicked off on Wednesday, June 19, 2024, had many surprises, guests, and performances, including Remble, Ray Vaughn, Cuzzos, Rucci & AzChike, Meet The Whoops, Wallie The Sensei, Westside Boogie, Zoe Osama, Kalan.FrFr & G Perico, Bino Rideaux, BlueBucksClan, RJMrLA, OhGeesy, Jason Martin, and Tommy the Clown.
