Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán's sons, Iván Archivaldo Guzmán and Jesús Alfredo Guzmán, are enforcing coronavirus lockdown measures in the Mexican city under their cartel's control by threatening violence on anyone who violates the mandatory curfew. Iván and Jesús, also known as "Los Chapitos" or "Little Chapos," currently run their incarcerated father's infamous Sinaloa drug cartel in the city of Culiacán, and they've made it very clear to the residents of the Mexican town that the coronavirus pandemic is a serious matter. “After 10 o’clock at night, all the people must be inside their homes due to the coronavirus, otherwise they will be punished," a member of the Sinaloa Cartel announced in a video circulating online. "These are orders ‘from above,'” he specified, referring to Los Chapitos.

Big Sean is putting all the rumours about his alleged beef with Kendrick Lamar to rest, as he spoke to Joe Budden about his rumoured feud with the Compton rapper on Budden’s “Pull Up” series. When Kendrick hopped on Sean’s track “Control” in 2013 and called Sean out along with plenty of other rappers on his explosive verse, it was heavily assumed that the two were not on good terms. This speculation rose when Sean seemingly clapped back at Kendrick on “No More Interviews” three years later. On the track, Sean spits, “And I’m just not impressed by you ni*gas rapping fast / Who sound like one big asthma attack, but trash when I’m rapping it back / Who you put in your top five and claim they the saviour of rap / So many friends turn to enemies, they frenemies.” Sitting down with Joe on “Pull Up,” Sean clarified that the diss wasn’t aimed at Kendrick.

“I remember going online and seeing, ‘Oh, is he talking about Kendrick?’” Sean recalled about the “No More Interviews” lyrics. “Cause I was talking about people who rap fast. I wasn’t beefing with nobody. I was literally addressing a whole f*cking—I’m just rapping, ni*ga. It wasn’t like a specific person or else I would’ve said his name. So I see and I’m like, ‘That’s some bullsh*t.’ So I didn’t give no energy to it.”

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However, new developments occurred when Kendrick dropped “The Heart Part 4” in 2017. “Time goes on,” Sean continues, “and then Kendrick, he dropped a freestyle and I don’t know what he said that made people like, ‘Oh, it’s about Sean.’ So I hear the sh*t, I’m like, ‘What part they talking about?'” In an attempt to sort things out, Sean contacted Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith, CEO of Top Dawg Entertainment where Kendrick is signed. Top assured him that Kendrick was not firing shots at him. “I immediately hit up Top cause I got a relationship with Top. And they like, ‘No, it ain’t about you at all. That was just addressing to everyone. That was just to whoever. But don’t listen to the Internet, they just gonna throw 200 on it,’” he explained. “I’m like, ‘Alright, fo sho.’ Imagine I have that conversation, I’m like, ‘Alright I ain’t even gotta reach out to Kendrick.'”

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Sean would come to regret never addressing the alleged diss with Kendrick, though, as their relationship was affected by all this beef talk despite neither of them having a problem with one another. “It got to a point where somehow, it was just a weird tension between me and him even though it was already said it was no beef because people made it that way,” he explained. “Fast forward, I let the sh*t go. He let the sh*t go. He never talked about it. I never talked about it and I should’ve said something. I should’ve just came out and been like, ‘Nah, that ain’t it.’”

Ultimately, the two of them sorted out their issues, after Sean was reminded of the somewhat nonexistent drama by an executive for TDE, Punch. Sean and Punch were seated next to each other on a flight to North Carolina for J. Cole’s Dreamville Festival last April, when the topic of  Kendrick was brought up. “He’s like, ‘You ever hollered at Kendrick?’ And then as soon as he said that…it was like, ‘Ohhh,'” Sean noted. “I damn near put it on the back burner in my brain. I’m like, ‘Damn. No, I never did.’ And he was like, ‘Man, you should’ve definitely hollered at him.'” Luckily, it wasn’t too late for the two MCs to make peace. “Got his number and we communicated,” Sean revealed. “The respect is mutual. It was literally nothing.”

The mad carnival that is Big Sean, Kendrick Lamar and Jay Electronica’s “Control” continues to have ramifications to this day. Or maybe it doesn’t. Who really knows. Can we fairly attribute Kendrick’s notorious call-out, easily the song’s most iconic moment, as the fire that sparked beneath the collective asses of eleven honored emcees? And thus, is it fair to attribute their respective bodies of work, many of which are considered if not classic, damn fine efforts, to be a direct response to that fateful challenge?

Consider those who caught Kendrick’s eye that day. J. Cole. Wale. Krit. Tyler. Mac Miller. Drake. Jay Electronica. Sean. Meek. Rocky. Pusha T. Circa 2013, those eleven emcees served as the elite voices of an era. The ones that, by Kendrick’s own estimation, were both inspiring to his creativity and threatening to his reign. Rather than smothering them in the crib, he issued a warning and allowed them room to prepare a return volley. And prepare they did. Cole’s next album was 2014 Forest Hills Drive. Mac Miller’s was Faces. Jay Electronica came through with…Rocky had At. Long. Last. ASAP. Drake’s pulled a stylistic about-face and channeled his inner miscreant on Nothing Was The Same. Appropriately, following Kendrick’s verse, nothing really was the same. 

Can one verse really have so much power it alters the career trajectory of a fully grown man? Kendrick’s DAMN. proved his understanding of pride as a concept, a powerful if ultimately sinful motivator. It stands to reason that his own pride drove him to write the verse in the first place. Coming off the release of Good Kid, m.A.A.d City, critics and fans alike were singing his praises; with one major-label debut under his belt, many were already touting him as the best rapper alive. The only reason the “Control” name dropping had such an impact is the fact it came from Kendrick Lamar in the first place. For one, it dulled the sting of the blow, the most painful sting reserved for those who went unnamed. Second, it established him as a competitor, one who still enjoyed the pure sportsmanship of a streetside cipher. A quality that feels by and large absent from modern-day hip-hop, save for a few signs of life.

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That’s not a slight on today’s musical climate by any means. But muse on this — could a verse akin to Kendrick’s “Control” have the same effect if delivered in 2020? Specifically, a verse that mirrored the same process of name-dropping eleven elite emcees and challenging them to a duel for dominance. If so, two questions arise: who would deliver the verse, and more importantly, who would make up the eleven?

Unfortunately, it’s hard to imagine somebody dropping a “Control” style verse without coming off as a fiend for the clout. Shades were teased during Tory Lanez’s spirited verbal tilt with Joyner Lucas; perhaps, for the sake of this what-if, our challenge might come from one of them — though neither party having a Good Kid under their belt might serve to lessen the blow. J. Cole has previously teased that “nobody likes rapping with him” anymore, following a particularly elite spree of feature verses — might that confidence not be better suited as arrogance? He’d certainly turn heads if he chose to take such a road, but given his newfound position as Dreamville’s unofficial father-figure, it’s unlikely. In truth, I’m not concerned with who does the name-dropping, but rather which names are dropped. It’s 2020, and everyone listed in “Control” has ascended into O.G. status. Provided those named actually took up the challenge (in lieu of penning responses on social media) think of all the glorious music us fans would receive. Receive from… receive from….

Denzel Curry. He’d get named for sure. The Carol City artist has proven himself to be one of the game’s most confident lyricists. Not only can he bring high volumes of intensity to the mix, but he’s supremely talented when it comes to penning verses. Songs like “Speedboat” and “Sirens” reveal the depth of his cleverness, and the Flordia-centric Zuu prove he’s creative enough to explore more thematic bodies of work. Whoever would dare put the game on watch would be wise to bring Curry into the fold. If only to boost their own credibility by way of real recognize real. On that note, it feels appropriate to throw New York’s own, and Denzel’s former sparring partner, Joey Bada$$, into the mix. Strictly on the basis of lyricism, few can match the Badmon’s intensity; having spoken of competitive ciphers, who better to rep that energy than the man who helped revive Big Tigger’s Tha Basement, if only for one day. 

Frazer Harrison/Getty Images – Denzel Curry

Curiously enough, when older rappers reflect on their favorite “younger” artists, there are two names that come up with more frequency: Gunna and Lil Baby. Having earned co-signs from the likes of Nas and Westside Gunn, the melodic stylings of the Drip Harder duo have earned them the right to be deemed elite in today’s climate. Omitting them from a “Control” redux would feel particularly biased, and arguably salty given the impact they both continue to have. Speaking of the Baby moniker, DaBabywould be an easy contender. At once lyrical, charismatic, and competitive, DaBaby would likely benefit from having a fire lit under him, especially if it allowed his early-millennium influences to emerge. Newly-minted number-one spot holder Roddy Ricch, still benefiting from the house that eee-err built, feels destined for greatness. Perhaps it would be wise to name-drop him, if only to keep the young Compton star on his toes. As some of the game’s best current straight-up lyricists, the Griselda trifecta would have to be challenged — especially given the sweet three-for-one value. 

Would it be realistic to challenge Lil Uzi Vert? I suppose he’d be the stand-in for Jay Electronica in this context, elusive bastard that he is. When he does eventually drop, it’s entirely possible that Eternal Atake ushers in a whole plethora of new styles, making him one of the game’s chief influencers. It only makes sense to pay respects accordingly. On that note, it’s tempting to namedrop Playboi Carti in the same breath, though it’s unlikely he’d be moved by his own inclusion to begin with. Still…it would almost be worth it if only for the inevitable uproar it would cause. Likewise for more established artists like Future, Young Thug, or the Migos, who would likely balk at the prospect of healthy competition at this juncture of their career. Cardi Bmight have been an interesting contender, were the full extent of her pen game ever revealed. Still, her presence on a beat cannot be denied and sleeping on her popularity would be unwise. Megan Thee Stallion is another contender for inclusion, cutting a domineering cloth and capable of trading bars with every collaborator she’s liked with thus far. And bar for bar, it’s unwise to count out Young M.A, who recently killed it on her first collaboration with Eminem.  

In actuality, all of the eleven Kendrick originally named shared one defining attribute. All of them were lyrically proficient. A hypothesis might then suggest that Kendrick draws inspiration from strong lyricists, as would anyone penning a fictitious successor to “Control.” As some of the game’s best writers, it’s likely that Mick Jenkins, Rapsody, YBN Cordae,  Maxo Kream, and J.I.D would be positioned within the crosshairs. Hell, J.I.D. might be one of the only current rappers capable of penning a verse of “Control’s” game-changing pedigree to begin with. Consider how he was absolutely salivating at the prospect of trading competitive bars with Tory Lanez, only for those dreams to be swiftly quashed without so much as a punchline. Mick himself almost inadvertently set it off on 2018 single “Bruce Banner,” rapping “can’t nobody come for me except Kendrick, and I hope you’re offended.” If he were to commit a little bit further to the dubious art of provocation, who knows what matter of beast he might have unleashed. On the opposite end of the beast spectrum, loveable everyman Boogie might be worth a mention, though he’s a little too relaxed to muster up a convincing retort; when it comes to artistic vision, however, he’s arguably among the game’s most focused album sequencers. As for Vince Staples, he’d likely write off the whole process as corny — honored though he may be on the inside.