By: Fred Smith

When Kendrick Lamar and Drake went to lyrical war, the world watched like it was a championship game. Twitter trended. Tik- Tok exploded. Fanbases clashed in digital gladi- ator pits. Every post, every hot take, every side chosen fueled a fire much bigger than music. But here’s the twist: while we were busy battling each other online, someone else was cash- ing the checks.

Let’s be real—every stream of a diss track, every reaction video, every think piece published put more money into the machine. Labels, media platforms, and advertisers saw green while we saw red. The artists themselves? They may have walked away with increased numbers, but the real winners were the gatekeepers of an industry that thrives off conflict. It’s a business model: stir division, profit off dist

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