Everything Drake References in “$Omy $Exy $Ongs 4 U”: From Kendrick Lamar to Charli XCX

Drake and Partynextdoor Release Joint Album

Drake and Partynextdoor have dropped their first collaborative album, “$ Omy $ Exy $ Ongs 4 U” – discover more about them as tested through the record below.

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Album Background and Themes

This album marks the first release for the Pop-Rap juggernaut following its intense rap rivalry with Kendrick Lamar. After Lamar quit, Drake’s performance during the Super Bowl halftime show was widely perceived as a setback in the rap community.

Turning to his collaboration with Partynextdoor, the “$ Omy $ Exy $ Ongs 4 U” is rich in sultry R&B tracks featuring their longstanding partnership at the OVO label.

One standout track, “Give me a hug,” sees Drake addressing the negativity surrounding him stemming from his feud with Lamar, calling out other artists like The Weeknd, Future, Metro Boomin, and Rick Ross, who have taken shots at him.

In his first verse, he expresses gratitude to his fans and highlights his impact on rap with lines such as: “Drizzi, you are amazing, you inspire / you install a bar for the next generation / you are not in the matrix, these n **** n is simply not in the ocean / small fish, forcing children to feel emotions / using you for promotion, more truthful words never said.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oicqfdtdp4

Continuing, he dismisses the notion that rivals like Lamar and Future could take his place in the rap scene, claiming they would do more harm than good to the genre: “It's funny, like this is a bitch. This? / Girls at the age of 29 on stage turned with a dictionary?”

The track evolves into a more upbeat club rhythm sampling Aaron Hall’s 1993 R&B hit, “I Miss You,” before Drake spits: “They will drop shit, but we quit more shit / fuck the rap gowadin, I try to get a party, lit / try to light a party for bitches / their tights, hug this ass, as if they missed it.”

He also references his long-standing rival, Joe Budden, and quips during a podcast co-hosting: “Melyssa Ford, you are a legend out of 6, you hate to see you with a wild.”

The rapper addresses his conflicts with Future and Metro Boomin, noting, “The shots simply hit me, said: ‘Put the entire beef to the side, I can’t,’ Drake rap on ‘brain steel’, ‘mm-km, I have been heated now, yes / n **** I want to meet, let’s talk about Shit, I am Vegan now / Evil eyes looked at me, I see it now.’”

In March last year, Metro Boomin released a collaborative album with tracks that lit up the ongoing feud with Kendrick Lamar. On “Brain Steel,” named after the lawyer who defended him in a historical case, the rapper responded to Lamar’s tweet from last October: “@drake @1future @metroboomin We are all Bruddas. Music is not the same without us, collabin.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CP7L2AFR78K

Fans speculate that Drake takes a shot at LeBron James in “$ Omy $ Exy $ Ongs 4 U.” On the track “greedy,” Drake raps: “It was a good life, money and bright light / not as bad as people describe / I was a good guy, the people whom I did correctly / turned me over, but, girl, everything is in order.”

While this could reflect Drake’s feelings towards Lamar—who he previously toured with—speculation arises that Drake’s issues lie with LeBron, especially after altering song lyrics while on tour. He switched lines, noting: “How I’m going from 6 to 23, but not LeBron”, suggesting tensions with his former friend amidst the feud with Lamar.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lutr8qwgwxa

Throughout the album, Drake also pays tribute to numerous stars. On “Word of the Little Town,” fans identified mentions of contemporary pop icons Tate McRae and Charlie XCX. He raps: “Bitch, I feel like Tate Makry / Vanilla ice and white hoes, a straight cake,” and later employs Charlie’s name as a euphemism for drugs: “Let, Charlie, under her nose, X in her language / She was heavy, she did, she had a ‘rude’ summer.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LQ8DKBTXXC

In “Rain in Houston,” Drake pays homage to late rap legend DJ Screw, renowned for his distinctive remixes. As he raps over synth beats, listeners are reminded of DJ Screw’s influence with lines like: “If you have loveH-TownPut your Deius, place your h, once to my brother, dj vint.

In the closing track, “glorious,” Drake acknowledges his right-hand man while critiquing his vigilance: “It is better for him to hack the white flag, Baku saw his brother, he was shot down with a side bag / yes, right upwards asked him: ‘What is in a side bag?’ / Knocked on his chest, inside the fact that / the guys are not sick, and my killings fly, we thought that you were on this, throws, my bad.”

• READ MORE: The enmity of Drake and Kendrick Lamar: a full time scale

Many fans believe that Drake intentionally addressed Baka and collaborated with Partynextdoor on “$ Ome $ Exy $ buts 4 U” in response to Lamar’s “not like us.” The lyrics of both songs have been scrutinized, especially Lamar’s line: “And the party at the party plays with his nose now / and Bucky has a strange case, why is he nearby?”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MW8COCOCRBFGW

Lamar’s “strange case” arises from Baka’s arrest in 2014 for allegedly forcing a woman into prostitution. He was found guilty of attacking a woman and failed to meet the conditions of unrelated firearm charges the following year.

In other news, Lamar recently performed “not like us” during the NFL Super Bowl LIX, despite Drake’s ongoing lawsuit against their Universal Music Group label for profiting from “slander” in his song.