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Rapper Drake’s recently released album, For All the Dogs has been causing a stir all weekend.
One song, Fear of Heights, features wordplay that has fans convinced that he is taking shots at singer and beauty mogul Rihanna, seven years after their on and off fling ended.
US Magazine breaks down the lyrics: “Why they make it sound like I’m still hung up on you?” Drake seemingly sings to his ex. “That could never be / Gyal can’t ruin me / Better him than me / Better it’s not me.”
The report adds that Drake hits out at Rihanna’s partner, ASAP Rocky and even seemingly mocks intimate moments shared with her in the past.
“I’m anti, I’m anti,” continues Drake, seemingly referring to Rihanna’s 2016 album ANTI. Drake’s use of “Gyal,” a Caribbean pronunciation of “girl,” could also be a nod to Rihanna’s Barbadian background, per Genius. From there, Drake fires the biggest diss at his ex: “Yeah, and the sex was average with you / Yeah, I’m anti ’cause I had it with you.”
The tension is further amplified with more shots referencing the father of Rihanna’s two children on yet another track on the album.
“I ain’t pretty flacko, [expletive] / this [expletive] get really rocky?” Drake raps on Another Late Night, referring to both Rocky’s stage name and his nickname, “Flacko.”
The digs have caused a frenzy online since the album’s release on October 6, with fans poking humour, and many saying that the rapper is still not over his ex-beau.
When a popular Instagram page shared the apparent Rihanna disses, the Barbadian singer’s fans were up in arms, siding with her.
“If he was so over it and if it was so basic then why is he still talking about it?” one Instagram user writes.
“Real men don't talk about private moments no matter who it's about,” wrote one Sandra Frank.
“Boy bye. Someone’s jellyyyy,” wrote one Diana Quin.
Billboard Magazine reports that there are even more digs at Rihanna on the track Virginia Beach.
“Drake spits, ‘Drawin’ conclusions like you got a Parsons degree or somethin’/ I coulda treated you better, that’s crazy.’ And who has an honorary degree from the Parsons School of Design? That’s right- Rihanna!”
The report adds: “Needless to say, Drake’s apparent Rihanna and Rocky disses has a lot of fans fired up, the general consensus being that the “Rich Flex” rapper needs to just move on.”
Drake and Rihanna were first linked romantically in 2009, shortly after her public split from RnB singer Chris Brown.
While Rihanna called Drake her ‘friend’ for years on interviews, there was a shift in 2018 when she told Vogue that they are not friends any more.
E News reports: “Drake presented the "Wild Thoughts" singer with the Video Vanguard Award at the 2016 MTV VMAs. At the time, he announced he had been in love with her since he was 22 years old- and when he went in for a kiss, she swerved.”
"The VMAs is such a fan-focused awards show, so having that energy around me, and knowing the people who had received the award in the past, made it feel like a big deal. Waiting through that speech was probably the most uncomfortable part. I don't like too many compliments; I don't like to be put on blast,” Rihanna told Vogue.
When probed about the status of their relationship at the time, she said: "We don't have a friendship now, but we're not enemies either. It is what it is."
