Adiss track,diss record ordiss song (an abbreviation ofdisrespect ordisparage) is a track that verbally attacks someone, usually another artist. Diss tracks are often the result of an existing, escalating feud between the two people; for example, the artists involved may be former members of a group, or artists on rival labels.
The diss track as a medium of its own was popularized within thehip-hop genre, fueled by the hip-hop rivalry phenomenon (especially theEast Coast–West Coast hip-hop rivalry of the mid-1990s). More recently, entertainers from outside the traditional music landscape have adopted the genre.[1]
In the course of constructing their argument, artists often include a wealth of references to past events and transgressions in their diss tracks, which listeners can dive into. Artists who are the subject of a diss track often make one of their own in response to the first. It is this back-and-forth associated with a feud that makes this type of song particularly viral. The term "sneak diss" refers to lyrics in which an artist describes or refers to an individual in a negative or derogatory manner without explicitly naming the target.[2][self-published source]
Though the term "diss track" originated in hip-hop, there are many examples throughout music history of earlier songs written as attacks on specific individuals. Some have also been retroactively described as diss tracks in their own right.
.jpg)
The 18th-centuryBritish American song "Yankee Doodle" has been labeled a "diss song" and "diss track" byThe New York Times andCracked magazine. The song was written byLoyalist colonists againstPatriot colonists, opposing sides in theAmerican Revolutionary War. Loyalists (siding with theBritish monarchy) often sang "Yankee Doodle" directly at Patriots (siding with theAmerican revolutionaries) who were characterized in the song as a foolish andgay man named "Yankee Doodle". Notably in the song, Yankee Doodle puts only a "feather in his cap" and believes he thus qualifies as a "macaroni", a type of fashionable and sophisticated male European elite back then. The song was later reclaimed as an unofficialnational anthem of the United States.[3][4]
Another early example is the 1963 comedy albumI Am the Greatest by boxerMuhammad Ali (then named Cassius Clay), released six months prior to Ali winning thefirst world heavyweight championship fight againstSonny Liston. The album helped establish Ali's reputation as an eloquently poetic "trash talker", dissing Liston and any future contenders several times, as demonstrated on the album's fifth track "Round 5: Will The Real Sonny Liston Please Fall Down". At the album's release, Ali's remarks were treated as mere promotional bragging, until Ali won against Liston in their fight on February 25, 1964.I Am the Greatest is widely considered a precursor of hip-hop music.[5][6]
Reggae musicianLee "Scratch" Perry was known for writing tracks that insulted his former musical collaborators. One prominent example was the 1967 song "Run for Cover", directed at producerCoxsone Dodd.[7] Another example was "People Funny Boy", a 1968 track which attacked Jamaican reggae producerJoe Gibbs; Gibbs would respond later in the year on the track "People Grudgeful".[8] Perry's 1973 track "Cow Thief Skank" was a diss against fellow record producerNiney the Observer, who was feuding with Perry at the time.[9][10]
John Lennon ofthe Beatles wrote "Sexy Sadie", a song released on the band's 1968 albumThe Beatles, as a diss track aimed atMaharishi Mahesh Yogi, a guru who he felt had been a let-down to them. The original lyrics specifically targeted him, but at the request ofGeorge Harrison the lyrics became more vague.[11][12][13][14] Lennon continued writing diss tracks after the break-up of the Beatles; his most forceful such song was "How Do You Sleep?", from his 1971 solo albumImagine. Lennon had the impression that the song "Too Many People" fromPaul McCartney'sRam (1971) was a dig at him, something McCartney later admitted,[15] and that other songs on the album, such as "3 Legs", contained similar attacks.[16] As a result, Lennon wrote "How Do You Sleep?" to indirectly mock McCartney's musicianship. While McCartney is never mentioned in the song, the many references make clear he is the target, particularly in the lyrics "The only thing you done was yesterday/And since you've gone you're just another day", the first lyric being a reference to The Beatles' 1965 song "Yesterday" and the second line referring to McCartney's 1971 song "Another Day".[citation needed]
The 1974 song "Sweet Home Alabama" byLynyrd Skynyrd deliberately insultsNeil Young for his criticism of Alabama in the song "Southern Man". Young admitted later "I didn't like my words when I wrote them. They are accusatory and condescending."[17]
The Sex Pistols are another group who recorded several diss tracks, including "New York", aimed atThe New York Dolls, and "E.M.I.", aimed at their former record labelEMI.[18][19][20]
In the 1980s, diss tracks began to feature prominently in the hip-hop genre. The first known hip-hop feud (or "beef") was theRoxanne Wars.[21] The Roxanne Wars began in 1984 whenRoxanne Shanté andMarley Marl released the song "Roxanne's Revenge", a diss track aimed at the trio U.T.F.O. "Roxanne's Revenge" was a quick success, leadingU.T.F.O. to compose a response: they joined forces with Elease Jack andAdelaida Martinez, who adopted the stage name "The Real Roxanne," to release a song under that name in 1985. Roxanne Shanté replied soon afterward, and the feud rapidly expanded from there, with numerous other rappers writing songs that expanded upon the Roxanne mythos.[21]
Another prominent hip-hop feud from the 1980s wasThe Bridge Wars, a dispute over the birthplace of hip-hop.Marley Marl andMC Shan released the track "The Bridge" in 1985, in which they were perceived as claiming that the genre originated inQueensbridge.KRS-One andBoogie Down Productions responded with "South Bronx" in 1986, and the feud continued to escalate, culminating with Boogie Down Productions' "The Bridge Is Over" in 1987.
There also existed smaller-scale rivalries during this period: Craig Werner describes "interminable ego duels betweenLL Cool J andKool Moe Dee" during the later 1980s.[22]
TheEast Coast–West Coast hip-hop rivalry brought about increased popularity for hip-hop diss tracks. This feud began with East Coast rapperTim Dog's 1991 song "Fuck Compton", which expressed his anger at record companies' preference of West Coast artists over the East Coast. "Fuck Compton" provoked many responses, includingDr. Dre's single "Fuck Wit Dre Day (And Everybody's Celebratin')" the following year. In addition to attacking Tim Dog, "Fuck Wit Dre Day" insultsEazy-E, who was one of Dre's fellowN.W.A members prior to the group's dissolution. Eazy-E responded to the diss with "Real Muthaphuckkin G's" in 1993. Other notable diss tracks resulting from the N.W.A breakup includeIce Cube's 1991 single "No Vaseline".
Rappers from other regions also became involved in the East Coast–West Coast feud at times; for instance, Chicago rapperCommon exchanged diss tracks with Ice Cube after Common was perceived as having insulted the West Coast on his song "I Used to Love H.E.R."[23]
The East Coast–West Coast rivalry came to be exemplified by the feud betweenTupac Shakur andthe Notorious B.I.G., which began after Biggie's song "Who Shot Ya?" was interpreted by Shakur as a mockery of his 1994 robbery.[24][25] Though both the Notorious B.I.G. andPuff Daddy denied involvement and asserted that "Who Shot Ya?" had been recorded before the robbery,[26] Shakur nevertheless retorted on several tracks, most famously "Hit 'Em Up" in 1996.[23]
Another major feud from this era was the feud betweenJay-Z andNas in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Jay-Z dissed Nas (as well asProdigy ofMobb Deep) on the 2001 track "Takeover", and Nas retorted later that year with "Ether". Ether in particular has come to be seen as a "classic" diss track,[27] and caused "ether" to emerge as a slang term meaning to ruthlessly defeat someone in a rap battle.[28]
In the 2010s, rivalries among hip-hop musicians have birthed numerous notable diss tracks.
After years of a reported feud and subtle references, rapperPusha T called outLil Wayne, as well as Wayne'sCash Money andYoung Money record labels, in a 2012 song titled "Exodus 23:1". Lil Wayne responded with a diss track of his own, "Ghoulish".Drake, who at the time was signed to Young Money, subsequently entered the feud with "Tuscan Leather", a song on his 2013 albumNothing Was the Same. Pusha T and Drake then recorded several further diss tracks against each other. In 2016, Pusha T released the freestyle "H.G.T.V." and Drake responded with "Two Birds, One Stone". Pusha T then continued the feud with "Infrared", the closing track of his 2018 albumDAYTONA. This song sparked the response "Duppy Freestyle" from Drake, to which Pusha T responded with "The Story of Adidon". The cover of "The Story of Adidon" depicted a young Drake inblackface and featured lyrics revealing that Drake had a son. Due to Drake's high level of commercial success and popularity, the feud and the diss tracks that followed received significant coverage from hip-hop media and beyond.[29][30]
In 2015, Drake also engaged in a feud against rapperMeek Mill, who alleged that Drake usedghostwriters for his music. Drake's second diss track in response to the allegations was "Back to Back", which went on to become a critical and commercial success.[31]
In 2017, RapperRemy Ma released a diss track aimed atNicki Minaj named "Shether", a reference to Nas' "Ether", using the same beat.[32]
In 2018, rapperEminem, who had a long history of being embroiled in feuds, released "Killshot" in response toMachine Gun Kelly's diss "Rap Devil". Collectively, the official uploads to YouTube alone have raised more than 800 million views as of 2023.[33][34]
Drake andKendrick Lamar became embroiled ina feud in early 2024.J. Cole had claimed on 2023's "First Person Shooter" that he, Drake, and Lamar were the "big three" rappers of their generation; Lamar rebutted that claim on the song "Like That", released in March 2024, on which he argued that his skills were superior to either Drake's or Cole's.[35] Drake responded with the tracks "Push Ups" and "Taylor Made Freestyle" in April.[36][37] Drake used AI-generated vocals to imitateTupac Shakur's voice on the latter track; he was subsequently threatened with a lawsuit by Shakur's estate, leading him to remove "Taylor Made Freestyle" from streaming later in April.[38] Lamar responded to Drake on April 30 with the track "Euphoria", where he expresses hatred for Drake and levels a range of criticisms, and followed up with "6:16 in LA" on May 3.[35] The feud further escalated on the night of May 3–4, when both rappers released tracks in quick succession: Drake's "Family Matters" accuses Lamar of physical abuse, and Lamar's "Meet the Grahams" – released just 20 minutes later – accuses Drake of having a second unacknowledged child and of sheltering sex offenders.[35][39] Lamar continued on May 4 by releasing "Not Like Us", which accuses Drake of pedophilia;[40] Drake denied the claim on "The Heart Part 6" the following day,[41] a track where he also alleges that his allies had provided Lamar with false information.[42]
Other rappers have participated in the Drake–Kendrick Lamar feud as well. J. Cole responded to "Like That" with the song "7 Minute Drill", though he later removed it from streaming.[43] Singerthe Weeknd,A$AP Rocky, andRick Ross would all attack Drake on their respective songs "All to Myself", "Show of Hands", and "Champagne Moments" in April.[44][45][36]Kanye West also released a remix of "Like That", featuring his own verse dissing both Drake and J. Cole.[46]Metro Boomin, aproducer, released "BBL Drizzy", aninstrumental diss track.
In January 2024,Megan Thee Stallion released the song "Hiss", which dissed multiple unknown people in the music industry. One lyric in the song; "aye, these hoes ain't mad at Megan, these hoes mad at Megan's Law", was suspected to refer to fellow rapperNicki Minaj.Megan's Law is a federal law requiring law enforcement authorities to make information available to the public regarding registered sex offenders. Minaj has been criticized for her relationship with registered sex offender,Kenneth Petty, who was convicted ofattempted rape in 1995.[47] Minaj responded with the song "Big Foot", which was heavily panned by audiences and critics alike.
In the late 2010s, personalities from outside the music industry – especiallyYouTubers – began releasing diss tracks. Diss tracks performed especially well on YouTube, often drawing tens or hundreds of millions of views, spawninginternet memes, and earning millions of dollars inAdSense revenue for their creators. Notable YouTubers who have released diss tracks includeLogan Paul,Jake Paul,RiceGum,KSI,PewDiePie, andIDubbbzTV.[1] In 2018, YouTuber Jake Paul wascertified platinum for his track "It's Everyday Bro",[48] and YouTubers RiceGum and Alissa Violet were certified platinum for "It's Every Night Sis", the diss track they made in response.[49][50]
In January 2016, rapperB.o.B. and astrophysicistNeil DeGrasse Tyson engaged in a public argument onTwitter after B.o.B.claimed that the Earth was flat. The argument culminated with B.o.B. releasing a diss track against Tyson, titled "Flatline"; Tyson subsequently enlisted his nephew, Stephen Tyson, to write and record a rebuttal titled "Flat to Fact".[51][52]
In 2022, rapperPusha T and restaurant chainArby's collaborated to promote Arby's new Spicy Fish Sandwich by releasing a diss track aimed atMcDonald'sFilet-O-Fish.[53] Pusha and Arby's followed the track with a second one, later in the year, which criticized theMcRib.[54]