“They wanted blood”- J. Cole speaks on why he backed out of the Kendrick Lamar and Drake beef on his new song

J. Cole addressed Kendrick Lamar and Drake's beef in his latest song Port Antonio, which he dropped on Wednesday, October 9. While seemingly siding with Drizzy, the musician said that he exited the feud as he believed that the duo “wanted blood.” Other parties involved had not publicly commented on the song at the time of writing this article.

J. Cole released the song after Kendrick Lamar took shots at him in his, Future and Metro Boomin’s Like That song. Prior to Like That’s release, J. Cole and Drake sang in their First Person Shooter song that the “big three” included them alongside Kendrick Lamar, which subsequently led to a months-long battle between Drake and Kendrick Lamar.

In Port Antonio, J. Cole claimed that he did not involve himself in the rap feud as they wanted to financially benefit from their battle. In the five-minute song, J. Cole sang:

“I pulled the plug because I seen where that was about to go, they wanted blood, they wanted clicks to make they pockets grow/ Wouldn’t have lost the battle, dog, I would’ve lost a bro. I would’ve gained a foe, and all for what?”

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J. Cole encourages Drake to write new songs in Port Antonio

Jermaine Lamarr Cole mentioned Drake by name in his latest song and encouraged him to release new music. He sang:

“Aye Drake, you’ll always be my n**ga, I ain’t ashamed to say you did a lot for me, my n**ga/ F*ck all the narratives, tapping back into your magic pen is what’s imperative.”

In the song, Cole also stated that he did not want to be remembered for ragging those who he considered his peers or making others’ dirty laundry public after knowing them for years. J. Cole also sang:

“Jermaine is no king, if that means I gotta dig up dirt and pay the whole team of algorithm bot n**gas just to sway the whole thing on social media, competing for ya favorable memes”

Cole didn't mention Kendrick Lamar by name in the song. This follows his earlier release of the diss track 7 Minute Drill, which he later removed from streaming platforms. In the track, Cole criticized K. Dot's music, calling it "tragic" and saying it could put people to sleep.

However, in April at the Dreamville Festival in North Carolina on Sunday, Cole called the song “lame” and goofy.” He also stated that he felt “terrible” following its release. He also stated that he was pressured by his peers to go to “war” with Lamar but the song he released “didn’t sit right with my spirit.”

Many had mixed reactions to Cole rescinding the song. Notably, Fat Joe stated that it was a poor decision to take back a diss track and that he was damaging his reputation by apologizing to Kendrick Lamar amid his beef with Drizzy.

Meanwhile, following the release of Port Antonio, Drizzy took to Instagram to like Cole’s Instagram post that promoted his new song.