Kendrick Lamar Knows What He's Doing With His Canadian Tuxedo
If you’re like me, and have a penchant for trivial celebrity tantrums and American hip-hop, then you'll relish in the times when they crossover. That happened last spring, when a long-simmering feud between Drake and Kendrick Lamar culminated in a succession of back-and-forth diss tracks, as tension-fuelled as any Wimbledon rally.
For those who weren't there for it, I recommend reading up on the beef in full. But to summarise, it started with Kendrick suggesting that he was in another league to J. Cole and Drake, as the former had rapped that they were "the big three". J. Cole quickly dropped out of the running, but Drake was wounded. He responded with 'Push Ups (Drop and Give Me 50)' jabbing at Lamar's height, and then 'Taylor Made Freestyle', until Kendrick punched back with 'Euphoria'.
'Not Like Us' was Lamar's final punch, and ultimately his hardest, as it currently has over a billion streams on Spotify, and according to Billboard magazine, it increased streams of Lamar's back catalogue by 49%. Last night proved that it was also award-worthy.
Kendrick won five(!) gramophones at the Grammy Awards, making it the most awarded rap song in history. It got both song and record of the year, best music video and both best rap song and performance.
However, the pièce de résistance for me was the getup that he accepted the awards in.
Having skipped the red carpet, we had our first view of Lamar’s full outfit when he went on stage. In all of his 5ft4 glory, Lamar was wearing a white t-shirt, underneath a denim jacket and matching pair of jeans: simply put, a Canadian tuxedo.
It was the final, subtle blow against Toronto-born Drake. What better way is there to remind his rival, as well as the thousands of viewers who tuned into last night's affair, that this is the reward for an argument the ‘Hotline Bling’ singer took too far?
With his ego bruised (if not trampled on) from Lamar's multiple award wins, the pointed sartorial choice might be enough to get Drake back in the recording studio.
Always on the pulse of culture, Lamar's endorsement of double denim couldn't come at a better time. Louis Vuitton, Sacai, Kid Super and Lemaire all had the look as part of their spring/summer '25 collections. Take that as a sign that you can also sport the ensemble, even if you're not in the business of pissing off your nemesis.
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