Drake responds to Pusha-T, but not in the way fans expected. After Pusha used a photo of Drake in blackface for the cover art of his diss track "The Story of Adidon," the image caused controversy and was eventually removed from Instagram. Now, Drake posts a quick blurb to his social media on Wednesday night (May 30) to at least answer to one of the many questions raised by Pusha's song.

"I know everyone is enjoying the circus but I want to clarify this image in question," Drake wrote. "This was not from a clothing brand shoot or my music career. This picture is from 2007, a time in my life where I was an actor and I was working on a project that was about young black actors struggling to get roles, being stereotyped and type cast," he continued.

"The photos represented how African Americans were once wrongfully portrayed in entertainment. Me and my best friend at the time Mazin Elsadig who is also an actor from Sudan were attempting to use our voice to bring awareness to issues we dealt with all the time as black actors at auditions.This was to highlight and raise our frustrations with not always getting a fair chance in the industry and to make a point that the struggle for black actors had not changed much," Drake concluded.

When the photos surfaced, many were quick to point out that Drake was wearing clothing in the photo from a brand called Too Black Guys from their line highlighting the Jim Crow Era. Too Black Guys said in a statement to XXL that Drake is a longtime friend.

"The photo in question was not from a Too Black Guys photoshoot however it did feature clothing from Too Black Guys’ JIM CROW COUTURE/HOUSE OF CROW collection which was released in 2008," the statement reads. "The collection featured several graphics that highlighted the painful and dangerous period of the Jim Crow Era. Too Black Guys has a history of representing the black experience in an unapologetic way. Although this was not an image from any of our photoshoots, we feel that Drake, who is a long- time friend of the brand, was brilliantly illustrating the hypocrisy of the Jim Crow Era," it continues.

To conclude, the brand says that Drake's photo shouldn't be a distraction from the racial prejudices still faced by Black people worldwide.

"The subtleties of Drake, a young black man, mimicking how white men used to mimic and dehumanize black people may be lost in a rap battle but we should not be distracted from the issues that are still affecting our communities," it concludes.

Drake's response is the latest in a week-long back-and-forth between the two artists that has seen vicious shots fired and boundaries broken. Pusha-T's Daytona album revived the beef last Friday, and Drake's "Duppy Freestyle" and "I'm Upset" only stoked the flame. "The Story of Adidon" is the most recent track to surface, and featured the controversial blackface image.

He now provides some context for the photo, but many questions remain. Perhaps this is a sign that the answers to the rest are coming soon. See Drake's post and the image in question below.

champagnepapi via Instagram
champagnepapi via Instagram
loading...

See Photos of Drake's Different Looks Over the Years

More From Club 93.7