Drama erupted in Toronto as a video went viral showing Drake’s affiliate, Top5, approaching Nobu Hotel where Kendrick Lamar was reportedly staying during his back-to-back sold-out concerts at the Rogers Centre. While rumors swirled online about a hotel lockdown, no official sources confirmed the claim. The moment, however brief, has reignited concerns about how far hip-hop rivalries can escalate beyond the music.
It was a historic night in Toronto. Kendrick Lamar, the Pulitzer Prize-winning rapper from Compton, stood before a roaring crowd at the Rogers Centre, delivering a thunderous rendition of “Not Like Us” his Grammy-winning diss aimed directly at Drake. The crowd’s two-minute standing ovation was a powerful show of support in the heart of Drake’s hometown.
But while Kendrick held the stage inside the stadium, chaos brewed online. A video began circulating on X and TikTok, showing Toronto rapper Top5, a known Drake affiliate, standing outside the Nobu Hotel.
“I’m Drake’s Toronto goon Top5. Where’s Kendrick at?”
he says into the camera. His tone is confrontational. The video clocked up several million views within hours, with one commenter writing,
“Bro pulled up to Kendrick’s hotel like it’s in GTA!”
Others falsely reported that the hotel had been closed off for safety reasons for Kendrick.
As misinformation swirled online, media watchdogs urged caution.
“The clip’s real, but everything else? Just noise,”
said one post flagged by misinformation-tracking accounts.
Drake and Kendrick’s rivalry is long-standing. It dates back to Kendrick’s now-iconic 2013 verse on Big Sean’s “Control,” where he named Drake directly. The tension remained dormant until it exploded again in 2024 with a string of diss tracks. Drake fired shots in “Family Matters” and “Fighting Irish Freestyle,” while Kendrick responded with the record-smashing “Not Like Us,” which he performed at Super Bowl LIX and which swept major categories at the Grammys, including Song of the Year.
This week’s Toronto performances were Kendrick’s first in Drake’s city since the feud reignited. Security was intense 25 officers were stationed at the Rogers Centre, alongside paramedic vans on standby. It was one of the most tightly guarded concert events Toronto has seen in years.
Top5, whose real name is Hassan Ali, is no stranger to headlines. The Toronto drill rapper was recently acquitted in a murder case and later arrested on firearm charges earlier this year. Drake reportedly covered his legal fees.
“He held me down when everyone else disappeared,”
Top5 said in a January livestream. His loyalty to Drake runs deep and often loud.
He’s also made threats toward Kendrick Lamar on social media.
“If Kendrick steps in Toronto, he gets touched,”
he said in an earlier video, now deleted. The music executive Wack100 dismissed Top5’s antics, calling him a “nobody” and telling fans,
“Drake can’t stop Kendrick from selling out the Rogers Centre facts.”
Reports of a “lockdown” at Nobu may have been exaggerated, but concerns around security weren’t baseless. A shooting occurred near Drake’s Bridle Path mansion in 2024, sparking speculation about the feud’s reach. Likewise, Schoolboy Q’s Toronto concert was canceled last July, allegedly due to rising tensions in the city’s music scene.
The Nobu Hotel, an upscale venue known for hosting celebrities, has become an unexpected stage in the feud. Still, there’s no evidence Kendrick Lamar was even in the building at the time of Top5’s appearance. As of June 14, no arrests or incidents have been confirmed.
While the video of Top5 outside Kendrick’s hotel is real, the claims of a hotel lockdown appear to be more fiction than fact. Still, the episode highlights how social media can amplify tension and how rap battles however artistic in origin can lead to real-world consequences.
As the feud simmers on, fans are left asking: Can hip-hop rivalries stay on the mic, or are we watching something that risks boiling over? The industry, and the city of Toronto, are watching closely.