In a new interview for VIBE Magazine's 2013 Race Issue, its cover star Drake reveals that, despite not having a consistently friendly relationship with Kanye West, the two have started talking about collaborating. But Kanye's not just a peer to Drake. He says Kanye is his only competition:

"He’s, like, the best. What an era to be a part of. I wouldn’t want my competition to be anybody else. My competition is nobody else, by the way. It’s just me and ‘Ye. I still have work to do but that’s what it is right now."

But what about Kendrick Lamar? Drake said that overall, he finds beef and confrontation to be stressful. When asked if "The Language" was a response to Kendrick's "Control" verse, Drake said that he never felt the need to respond to "Control." He went on to explain his feelings at the time of the song's release, explaining that while there are no hard feelings, the matter did become personal between the two:

"The sentiment he was putting forth is what he should have. Of course you wanna be the best. Where it became an issue is that I was rolling out an album while that verse was still bubbling, so my album rollout became about this thing. What am I supposed to say? Nah, we’ll be buddy-buddy? Mind you, I never once said he’s a bad guy [or] I don’t like him. I think he’s a fucking genius in his own right, but I also stood my ground as I should. And with that came another step, which then I have to realize I’m being baited and I’m not gonna fall. Jordan doesn’t have to play pickup to prove that he could play ball, no offense. But I’m not gonna give you the chance to shake me necessarily, ’cause I feel great. There’s no real issue. It’s tough because the people wanna see us tear each other down; I don’t wanna give them that. There’s no point. I have no ill feelings toward that guy. It’s just like, it’s there for me if I wanna fall for it. I’m just too smart for that. Hopefully it’s the last time I gotta talk about this, ’cause every time I open my mouth up about it, they take this piece and take this piece. And he’s hungry, so he’s going to do what he has to do like the BET [cypher]. But again, it’s not enough for me to go. We haven’t seen each other [since the BET cypher,] but I’m sure we’ll see each other and it’ll be cool. And if it’s not, then I guess that’s how our story unfolds."

Drake also discussed the process of putting together Nothing Was The Same, the relationship he currently has with his family, and the fallout of talking about his personal experiences in his music. He offered a formal apology to "Courtney from Hooters on Peachtree," whom he said no longer works at Hooters and is a "good, wholehearted person." Read the full interview here.

[via Vibe]

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