Top 75 Albums of All-Time - No. 49
Twitter fingers, Cocaine dealers, and a child hidden from the limelight: The Story of Daytona would be incomplete without a deep dive into the rap beef that capped off the project. Read it here.
No. 49 - Daytona - Pusha T
Just a note for people who follow this series: My cadence for releasing these has changed because I am diversifying my content overall. But rest assured, this series is not going anywhere. However, I am not following the old Monday, Wednesday, or Friday schedule. In fact, this doesn’t have a set schedule anymore. At least right now.
Daytona is a masterpiece among rap classics.
The production is magnificent, if not objectively flawless. Both jazzy and classical, while being modernly beat-centric and experimental. Put headphones on and you won’t be able to help from bobbing your head to the rhythm.
Pusha T’s delivery is as punchy as it has ever been. He remains economical with his word choice and pointed with his wordplay, one of the hallmarks of his style which has persisted in hip-hop since the early 2000s.
Daytona was bound to be universally acclaimed. Pusha T was coming off one of the most vicious and unanimous rap beef victories in rap history.
Context:
This is a feud that dates back to the early 2000s, you can read the full history here.
But it reached a boiling point in 2018.
Daytona was released on May 25th. The last song on the album “Infrared”, a menacing and minimal track aimed at one Aubrey “Drake” Graham.
A Genius annotation explains the meaning behind the track and its repercussions:
Infrared light is light that is usually invisible to human eyes, but using special kinds of film or devices, you can see things you wouldn’t usually see.In this way, Pusha T can see that a lot of rappers aren’t real, specifically Drake, who he calls out for having ghostwriters and references subliminally throughout the track. The two rappers have beefed years ago, trading shots at each other on tracks like “Exodus 23:1” and “Two Birds, One Stone.” With “Infrared,” Push seems to reignite the beef.
On Friday, May 25, 2018, Drake responded to this diss track, “Infrared,” with a diss track of his own called “Duppy Freestyle.” Drizzy sent shots at both Pusha T and Kanye West.
“Must’ve had your infrared wrong, now your head on the beam”
However, Push would release his own response to “Duppy Freestyle” four days later, titled “The Story of Adidon.”
On its own “Infrared” is a ruthless attack on Drake questioning his legitimacy within the rap landscape. Pusha T likens Drake to a sock-puppet and compares his act to that of a minstrel performer.
Unsurprisingly, this prompted a same-day response from Drake, “Duppy Freestyle”. A three minute diss track that responds to Pusha T and Kanye West who served as producer for Daytona.
“Duppy Freestyle” alleges that Pusha T is a fake drug dealer, that he is starting beef to sell more albums, and that his tough guy act is just that, an act, saying “There's no malice in your heart, you're an approachable dude / Man, you might've sold to college kids for Nike and Mercedes / But you act like you sold drugs for Escobar in the '80s”.
(‘You’re an approachable dude’ is objectively one of the funniest disses ever put out)
For four days it was radio silence.
People began to think Drake had silenced Pusha T.
Then…
“The Story of Adidon” dropped.
From the cover art (Yes, that is Drake in blackface) to the brutally disrespectful lyrics, it is one of the most iconic disses ever made.
In it Pusha T:
Evokes Drake’s parent’s loveless marriage and divorce
Discusses Drake’s father’s absenteeism (and insults the way he dresses, ouch), suggesting Drake only brings him around to demonstrate his blackness
Questions Drake’s blackness (again)
Reveals that Drake has a secret child with a pornstar. Going as far as name-dropping the child, Adonis.
Makes fun of Drake’s friend and long-time producer’s terminal illness
Just an incredibly ferocious track that seemingly buried Drake, never garnering a real response.
The story of Daytona would be incomplete without “The Story of Adidon”. The track sent the internet into a frenzy and nearly single-handedly shifted the rap landscape.
A lot has changed since then. But Drake and Pusha T remain on top of their game, both still releasing commercially successful projects since this time, despite the two occupying starkly different lanes.
Perhaps the story is not over…?
