Pusha T & Drake Beef Allegedly Almost Ruined Pop Smoke’s Album

After Pop Smoke passed away, his team was working on finishing his first album, “Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon”.

One song, called “Paranoia,” originally featured a guest verse from rapper Pusha T. However, drama ensued behind the scenes. According to Steven Victor, who managed both Pusha T and Pop Smoke, Universal Music Group (UMG), the label releasing the album, thought Pusha’s verse was throwing shade at Drake.

Even though the song had nothing to do with Drake or Pop Smoke, UMG told Victor that they wouldn’t let the album come out unless Pusha changed his lyrics. Victor was upset, saying it wasn’t even a diss and asking, “What happened to freedom of speech?” But the label didn’t back down, and Pusha’s verse was removed. The song was released without him, but the original version leaked online later, and fans definitely thought it sounded like a Drake diss.

This all ties back to the long beef between Pusha T and Drake. Their feud goes way back, but it really blew up in 2018 when Pusha dropped a diss track called “The Story of Adidon.” In it, he revealed that Drake had a secret son, which shocked many people. Since then, things have been tense between them. So when Pusha raps something that might sound like a jab at Drake, people, especially big labels, get nervous.

UMG didn’t want any drama connected to Pop Smoke’s album, so they made sure to keep things clean, even if it meant removing a big-name rapper from a song.