Rapper Reason Admits Backing Drake Over Kendrick Lamar Was His Ticket Out of TDE Contract [Video]

Ex-Top Dawg Entertainment artist Reason admits he only supported Drake during the Kendrick Lamar beef so he could be let out of his contract.

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“When the Dot and Drake beef started, I felt like Top [Dawg] and them were kinda, like, dragging their feet a little bit,” he explained to Bootleg Kev. “And I knew that if I kinda sparked a fire a little bit that they would be like, ‘We gotta separate from this.’ So I started tweeting s**t on the side of Drake purposely.”

In April 2024, Reason praised Drake’s diss track “Push Ups,” subtly shading his own label. His strategy worked—he was released from TDE within a month.

“I had to do that to get out of the label deal,” he admitted of his calculated move. “There are fans that hate me for that.”

On social media, Reason further defended his actions: “Me not dropping music means I can’t put food on the table… If it ever comes down to being able to do that, or choosing a side in a beef, ima choose my survival.”

I get it. This beef to y’all is everything so I completely get why some fans feel a way. But for me as an artist and human (I say that because in this we forget people are actually human lol), me not dropping music means I can’t put food on the table and feed me and my family. I… https://t.co/rIoptoS0Aa

— REASON (@_Reasonofficial) February 21, 2025

Reason’s frustrations with TDE were longstanding. In 2023, he clashed with TDE co-president Moosa over delayed projects.

“We had certain features lined up… takes too long to get pushed through,” he vented, citing missed collaborations with Latto and EST Gee.

Moosa later responded, “Dave [Free] never wanted us to sign Reason. He called him a substitute teacher.”