section_path: History/2011–12: Initial collaboration and favorable relationship
section_name: 2011–12: Initial collaboration and favorable relationship
paragraph_text: 2011–12: Initial collaboration and favorable relationship
  
  Drake and Kendrick Lamar's relationship began on favorable terms. The pair's first collaboration was "Buried Alive Interlude", a two-minute interlude performed entirely by Lamar from Drake's 2011 studio album Take Care, slotted on the tracklist directly after the hit single " Marvins Room ". Both artists are about the same age, but at the time, Drake was already a chart-topping success (having first achieved mainstream success with his 2009 single " Best I Ever Had "), while Lamar was viewed as a relatively unknown up-and-comer, having recently appeared on the 2011 XXL Freshman list.
  
  Lamar complimented Drake after their initial meeting and collaboration: "We met up, chilled out, got to vibe, see where each other was at and shit. Sometimes you like a person's music but you definitely don't like the actual artist when you sit down and you talk to them. That's a real good dude. He got a real genuine soul. We clicked immediately." Lamar also shared that Drake had been the first to hear his debut independent album, Section.80.
  
  In the track, Lamar shares how his initial meeting with Drake had felt like an introduction into the tempting, but potentially harmful world of celebrity, luxury, and fame. Lamar explores his complex feelings about fame — both desiring and fearing what it might bring into his life, especially upon getting a peek into Drake's life of luxury — and shares his "impatien" when finding out that himself and Drake were the same age. This fraught relationship with fame would become a theme in Lamar's music throughout his career, and often stood in contrast with Drake's celebration of luxury. This first collaboration foreshadowed themes that would lead to their eventual rift and feud, more than a decade before its explosion.
  
  Still, Drake and Lamar's relationship continued to develop amicably. Following a strong critical reception towards "Buried Alive Interlude", Lamar opened for Drake (alongside another up-and-coming contemporary, ASAP Rocky) during Drake's Club Paradise Tour in early 2012. The tour followed Drake's smash chart success Take Care. Around the time of the tour, in March 2012, Lamar was officially signed to major label Interscope Records.
  
  That fall, Lamar released his first major label album, Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City, which catapulted him to superstardom. The album featured a Drake verse on the track " Poetic Justice ", which later became a hit single. In December 2012, both Lamar and Drake also made an appearance on ASAP Rocky's hit single " Fuckin' Problems ", released in advance of Rocky's major-label debut.
  
  Drake and Kendrick Lamar's relationship began on favorable terms. The pair's first collaboration was "Buried Alive Interlude", a two-minute interlude performed entirely by Lamar from Drake's 2011 studio album Take Care, slotted on the tracklist directly after the hit single " Marvins Room ". Both artists are about the same age, but at the time, Drake was already a chart-topping success (having first achieved mainstream success with his 2009 single " Best I Ever Had "), while Lamar was viewed as a relatively unknown up-and-comer, having recently appeared on the 2011 XXL Freshman list.
  
  Lamar complimented Drake after their initial meeting and collaboration: "We met up, chilled out, got to vibe, see where each other was at and shit. Sometimes you like a person's music but you definitely don't like the actual artist when you sit down and you talk to them. That's a real good dude. He got a real genuine soul. We clicked immediately." Lamar also shared that Drake had been the first to hear his debut independent album, Section.80.
  
  In the track, Lamar shares how his initial meeting with Drake had felt like an introduction into the tempting, but potentially harmful world of celebrity, luxury, and fame. Lamar explores his complex feelings about fame — both desiring and fearing what it might bring into his life, especially upon getting a peek into Drake's life of luxury — and shares his "impatien" when finding out that himself and Drake were the same age. This fraught relationship with fame would become a theme in Lamar's music throughout his career, and often stood in contrast with Drake's celebration of luxury. This first collaboration foreshadowed themes that would lead to their eventual rift and feud, more than a decade before its explosion.
  
  Still, Drake and Lamar's relationship continued to develop amicably. Following a strong critical reception towards "Buried Alive Interlude", Lamar opened for Drake (alongside another up-and-coming contemporary, ASAP Rocky) during Drake's Club Paradise Tour in early 2012. The tour followed Drake's smash chart success Take Care. Around the time of the tour, in March 2012, Lamar was officially signed to major label Interscope Records.
  
  That fall, Lamar released his first major label album, Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City, which catapulted him to superstardom. The album featured a Drake verse on the track " Poetic Justice ", which later became a hit single. In December 2012, both Lamar and Drake also made an appearance on ASAP Rocky's hit single " Fuckin' Problems ", released in advance of Rocky's major-label debut.