Jay-Z believes the feud between Kendrick Lamar and Drake hasn't been "helpful" to the wider hip-hop scene.

The 99 Problems hitmaker noted the "excitement" of battling has always been a cornerstone of the movement but he thinks the rise of social media means such rows have far wider consequences than they ever did before.

Asked what he thought about the feud - which was characterised by Kendrick's diss track Not Like Us, which suggested Drake was a "certified paedophile" who should be "placed on neighbourhood watch - Jay told GQ magazine: "I'm going to have an answer you're not going to like. Well, I don't know if you're going to like it. That's presumptuous.

"There are four pillars of hip-hop. There's breakdancing, graffiti, there's DJ'ing and battling.

"Breakdance is not at the forefront of rap anymore. It's actually an Olympic sport. So that's dead. Graffiti, beautiful in certain places. It's not part of hip-hop. The DJ was in the forefront. It was Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince. Eric B. and Rakim. You don't even know the DJ for half of the artists anymore.

"And the last pillar is battling. We love the excitement and I love the sparring, but in this day and age there's so much negative stuff that comes with it that you almost wish it didn't happen.

"Now, people that like Kendrick hate Drake, no matter what he makes. It's like an attack on his character. I don't know if I love that. I don't know if it's helpful to our growth where the fallout lands, especially on social media.

"It's too far. It's bringing people's kids in it. I don't like that. I sound like the old guy wagging his finger, but I think we can achieve the same thing, as far as sparring with music, with collaborations more so than breaking the whole thing apart.

"It could stand it before because there was no social media. You had the battle and it was fun and then you moved on. Right now, I don't know if it could stand it with the technology that we have.

"It takes up so much oxygen. It's like trying to tear down people's lives. I don't know if it's worth it at this point."

The 56-year-old rapper questioned whether battling is necessary to hip-hop anymore and he is "curious" as to where things will lead.

He said: " I love the idea that we got so much music in such a short period of time. Just everything around it was like, 'Man, this is taking us a couple steps back.'

"We've just grown so much that - I guess I'm going to say it - I don't know if battling needs to be part of the culture anymore. We grew from breakdancing. We love graffiti. Before, the MC's job was to bring attention to the DJ…. I want to hear what the rapper is saying.

"Now the last pillar is battling, and these are all the things that come with it. I hate that I have this point of view on it. I do. Because I know what it sounds like. It's just how I feel about it."

He later added: "There is clearly an agenda to silence voices in our community, a heavy right wing agenda.

"And the culture is happily playing along in the name of this insane thirst of Stan culture to have something on the other side. We are in a strange time. I'm curious as to how this plays out!"

In February 2025, Kendrick headlined the Super Bowl halftime show - and played Not Like Us during his set - and Jay has laughed off speculation that choosing him for the high-profile performance meant he was taking a stand against Drake.

He said: "I chose the guy that was having a monster year. I think it was the right choice. What do I care about them two guys battling? What's that got to do with me? Have at it.

"They drag everybody in it, like everyone's part of this conspiracy to undermine Drake, I guess.

"But, it's like, what the f***? I'm f****** Jay-Z! All due respect to him. I'm f****** Hov. Respectfully. It doesn't make any sense.

"It couldn't be that these guys just don't like each other. I think this has been brewing, just like me and Nas was brewing.

"It didn't happen at the Summer Jam--that happened with 'Lex with TV sets, the minimum.'

"It was a whole bunch of stuff leading up to that point. I actually regret that because I really like Nas. He's a really nice guy."