Young Thug Breaks Silence on Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” Diss: “I’m a Drake Fan”

Young Thug has finally responded to Kendrick Lamar name-dropping him in the viral diss track “Not Like Us,” which took aim at Drake and a slew of his Atlanta collaborators. In his first interview since being released from jail in October 2024, Thugger sat down with GQ to reflect on the lyric that threw his name into one of the biggest rap beefs in recent memory.
In the third verse of Kendrick’s chart-dominating anthem, the Compton MC called out Drake’s strategic alliances with key Atlanta figures, questioning the authenticity of his street credibility. Kendrick didn’t hold back, rapping:
“You called Future when you didn’t see the club / Lil Baby helped you get your lingo up / 21 gave you false street cred / Thug made you feel like you a slime in your head / Quavo said you can be from Northside / 2 Chainz say you good, but he lied.”
Now, months later, Young Thug has weighed in on the viral moment — and he made his allegiance crystal clear.
“Yeah, he just spoke on people’s name in Atlanta,” Thug told GQ. “I don’t know what that was about. I’m a Drake fan.”
This statement is the first public indication of where Thug stands in the ongoing feud between two of rap’s biggest powerhouses. Despite being name-checked by Kendrick, Thug chose not to feed the fire, instead expressing his admiration for Drake — a nod to their long-standing friendship and musical history.
Even while incarcerated, Thug remained plugged into the beef thanks to his girlfriend, singer Mariah the Scientist. In a previous interview, she revealed that she had been playing the diss tracks for Thug over the phone.
“He’s a lover of music in general. He f–ks with everybody,” she said. “I don’t think he would ever be able to – let me not speak for him. He love music though.”
Mariah added that Thug found the battle between Kendrick and Drake “interesting,” and although she couldn’t keep up with all the back-and-forths, they listened to some of the tracks together early on.
But there’s more to the story that hints at where Thug’s loyalty lies. Following his release from jail, DJ Akademiks claimed that Drake personally visited Young Thug and gave him a reported $1 million just hours after he walked free.
“Y’all want to hear this play I heard? Watch, he gon’ hit me up, like, ‘Yo, how you heard?’” Akademiks said. “They say two hours afterward, Drake flew to Thug and allegedly gave him a mil.”
He clarified that the story didn’t come from Drake himself: “Drake didn’t tell me this. Drake gon’ hit me up and be, like, ‘Who told you this?’”
Neither Thug nor Drake have commented publicly on the reported million-dollar gift, but their tight bond and musical collaborations — from “Way 2 Sexy” to “D4L” — speak volumes.
As fans continue to dissect every lyric in the Kendrick vs. Drake saga, Young Thug’s latest comments serve as a reminder that in hip-hop, loyalty runs deeper than diss tracks — and Thugger is riding with the 6 God.
Would you like a breakdown of other Atlanta rappers’ reactions to Kendrick’s diss?