Kendrick Lamar Ends His Silence On That Explosive “Control” Verse: Listen To His Explanation

Kendrick Lamar dropped an atomic bomb on the hip-hop community earlier this month when he declared himself the King of New York in an explosive verse on Big Sean‘s “Control”. K-Dot called out peers J.Cole, Drake, Wale, Meek Mill and Mac Miller on the track — sparking an avalanche of responses from MCs as diverse as current hitmaker B.o.B and ’90s relic Cassidy.

The “Swimming Pools (Drank)” rapper has refused to comment on the controversy until now but finally opened up about it in an interview with Power 106. “Honestly I didn’t know there would be so much speculation behind it,” Kendrick told listeners. “I just wanted to rap. Anybody that knows me doing music, I wanna just rap.”

He then addressed that boast. “The irony of that line is the people that actually understood it… was the actual kings of New York,” he explained. “It’s not about actually being the king of whatever coast. It’s about leaving a mark as great as Biggie, as great as Pac.” Listen to the full interview after the jump.

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