Joe Budden is calling on Drake to stop trading subliminals and take his long-simmering tension with Jay-Z straight into the booth.
Speaking on the latest episode of The Joe Budden Podcast, the broadcaster and former rapper urged the OVO hitmaker to abandon coded bars and drop a direct diss record aimed at the Brooklyn rap legend.
“Take the Bait”
Reacting to persistent industry rumors that Jay-Z may be quietly assembling a new album, Budden argued that any potential return to the studio means the 56-year-old icon is open season for lyrical sparring.
“If the word is true… that Jay-Z could be putting an album out, what that means in rapper brain is, he is available to rap,” Budden said during the episode. “That means that his brain is firing in a way, right this second, that I’m prepared for anything.”
Directly addressing Drake, Budden challenged him to throw the first definitive punch:
“If you want to get to talking tough about the pen isn’t dry, take the bait. Jump out there. Set it on that old na. Fire on that old na, yo. Fire on that senior citizen. Kendrick and Drake was years ago now. Let’s turn it up.”
Escalating 2026 Subliminals
The renewed focus on the duo comes after months of subliminal back-and-forth between two of rap’s biggest titans:
- Drake’s Lines: On his Iceman project earlier this year, Drake delivered lyrics widely interpreted as shots at older rap figures and industry gatekeepers, including the phrase “the jig is up.”
- Jay-Z’s Response: Weeks later during his headline set at the Roots Picnic in Philadelphia, Jay-Z opened with an a cappella verse flipping Drake’s wording while taking aim at chart-driven accomplishments.
While both artists have circled each other for years—alternating between high-profile collaborations like “Light Up” and “Pound Cake” and competitive jabs—Budden believes hip-hop fans deserve a direct confrontation rather than continued inference.
“Anything that has been happening is my shoulder to your shoulder and us going around in the circle,” Budden explained. “You know that two n*as may wanna fight, and they’ve said some things. Swing.”
Budden even suggested potential titles for Drake’s hypothetical diss track, referencing Drake’s iconic timestamp song series with titles like “7:45 in Marcy” or “8:15 on State Street.”
Whether Drake takes the bait or Jay-Z addresses the challenge remains to be seen, but Budden maintains that a decisive victory against Hov would solidify Drake’s legacy once and for all.