Why is Kendrick Lamar receiving backlash over Dr Dre's appearance? Allegations explored as the internet calls out the rapper online

Kendrick Lamar has made headlines since his one-off show at Inglewood’s Kia Forum this week. However, amid the prevailing discussion regarding his beef with Drake, several people took issue with K. Dot’s guest list at the concert.

The Compton-born rapper assembled dozens of other West Coast artists, including DJ Mustard, Ty Dolla $ign, Steve Lacy, YG, Roddy Ricch, Ab-Soul, Jay Rock, The Creator, Tommy the Clown, Dom Kennedy, ScHoolboy Q, Dr. Dre, and Tyler, the Creator.

But it was Dr Dre’s presence alongside Kendrick Lamar, that earned severe criticism online. People took to X to call out the “Not Like Us” hitmaker for inviting Dre, who has been accused of being abusive towards women in the past.

Netizens said it was ironic of Kendrick Lamar to invite Dr. Dre while performing his Drake diss tracks, where he accused the Canadian rapper of similarly problematic behavior. K. Dot called Dreezy a “certified p*dophile” in his chart-topping hit last month. People noted it was a contradictory stance on Kendrick Lamar's part to amicably perform with Dre, a past abuser when he dragged Dreezy for exploiting minors.

"So Kendrick brought out Dr. Dre, the man who beat women to a pulp, but I thought we didn’t like abusers??? What happened to that. This why I can’t take these n***as serious", wrote one.

"That abuser talk goes right out the window anytime Dr Dre is present. Sending love to Dee Barnes who he brutally beat, both of his wives that he assaulted, one being stomped and thrown down the stairs, oh and Miche’le who he shot at and caused her jaw to be reconstructed", another commented.

"Why did Kendrick even bother to call Drake out for being a p*dophile who surrounds himself with abusers on Not Like Us if he was just going to call Dr. Dre—King of the Abusers—to introduce it?", questioned one person.

Some others slammed Kendrick Lamar and his rap beef with Drake in general, noting they dragged women and children into their feud, while it was about their ego all along.

"yall keep treating kendrick like a hero for outing drake with no proof when that man is happily on stage with dr dre who beats the sh*t out of women and dating michel’le when she was 16 and he was 22. this was never about women or children but always about men’s egos", said one.

Another person played with a part of Kendrick Lamar's "Not Like Us" lyrics where he hinted at Drake's OVO crew member Baka Not Nice and his past arrest over assault charges, and replaced Baka's name with Dr Dre:

"DR DRE GOT A WEIRD CASE, WHY IS HE AROUND?", wrote the X user.

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Abuse allegations against Dr Dre explored as internet calls out Kendrick Lamar

Dr Dre’s infamous attack on rapper and former TV personality Dee Barnes is not unknown to many. For the unreversed, Barnes claimed Dre encountered her at a party in Hollywood, where he grabbed her hair and picked her up before starting to slam her head against a brick wall repeatedly. Barnes said Dre’s bodyguard handled the crowd with a gun while the assault took place.

Dre then reportedly tried to push her down the stairs but failed and began kicking her hands and ribs. The former journalist claimed she escaped from the scene and rushed to the women’s restroom but Dre followed her there and grabbed her hair from behind again before punching her on the back of her head.

Dr. Dre was further accused of abuse by his ex-wife, Nicole Young, who alleged the rapper assaulted her on multiple occasions during their relationship. She claimed Dre once punched her in the face in a 1999 incident and also held a gun against her head in two separate instances in 2000 and 2001. Nicole Young alleged in the court documents:

“Andre has verbally and emotionally decimated my personhood to the extent that I currently suffer from post-traumatic stress syndrome.”

One of the main allegations that was brought up by netizens following Dr. Dre's attendance at Kendrick Lamar's Pop Out show, is his relationship with R&B singer Michel'le. DJ Akademiks shared a post on X on June 20, claiming Dre impregnated Michel'le when she was only 16 while he was 22. Community Notes rectified the claim and noted the two began dating when she was 16 and Dre was 22, but she only conceived their first child together at 20.

Nonetheless, Michel'le has previously accused Dre of being abusive throughout their relationship. In 2015, Dre issued an apology for his past behavior and said:

"I apologize to the women I’ve hurt...I deeply regret what I did and know that it has forever impacted all of our lives."

The R&B singer refused to accept his apology and she noted that the rapper only apologized to the public. She told HuffPost in a 2016 interview:

"I don’t think that was an apology to me, because if it was, he would’ve called me either without the public…I just think he did a general apology because he had a movie out, and he’s got a brand and that’s what you do. I’m not mad at him. If he feels free with that, then that’s good. I don’t know if Dee Barnes took it to heart."

Despite Dr. Dre's abusive history, his presence as a guest at Kendrick Lamar's concert was, thus, criticized by many. Some even pointed out how he was introduced on stage during the rendition of "Like That," which incorporated a sample by Michel'le in the post-chorus part.