The Wu-Tang Clan member also explained why rap beef can be good for musicians

RZA knows an iconic showdown when he sees one.

During a Thursday, Feb. 27 appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, the Wu-Tang Clan member spoke about the rap beef between Kendrick Lamar and Drake.

Colbert, 60, asked if RZA, 55, had been following along the “dramatic” feud, which hit a fever pitch with Lamar’s 2025 Super Bowl halftime show. RZA did, indeed, comparing it to “Godzilla vs. King Kong.”

The rapper said that Wu-Tang never experienced a major beef and explained why it can be “valuable in hip-hop.”

RZA attends the screening for 'Enter the Dragon' during the 2023 TCM Classic Film Festival on April 15, 2023 in Los Angeles, California; 2021 BILLBOARD MUSIC AWARDS -- Pictured: Drake, winner of Top Streaming Songs Artist and Artist of the Decade, poses backstage during the 2021 Billboard Music Awards held at the Microsoft Theater on May 23, 2021 in Los Angeles, California; Kendrick Lamar pose for a photo onstage at the Super Bowl LVIX Pregame & Apple Music Super Bowl LVIX Halftime Show Press Conference at Ernest N. Morial Convention Center on February 06, 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana

RZA in April 2023; Drake in May 2021; Kendrick Lamar in February 2025.Rodin Eckenroth/Getty; Todd Williamson/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty; Michael Owens/Getty

“Hip-hop is a sport. It’s a sport where we challenge emcees, we challenge the deejays, we challenge the breakdancers, we challenge who can make the best graffiti tag,” said RZA.

He continued, “It’s good for the sport when there’s confrontation. It’s healthy, as long as it stays on the record and stays in the music, and it doesn’t spill over to the streets where somebody gets hurt.”

The rap beef between Drake, 38, and Lamar, 37, dates back to 2023 when J. Cole and Drake described themselves and Lamar as the “big three” in the song “First Person Shooter.” Lamar disagreed and joined Future and Metro Boomin on the track “Like That” in response.

Diss tracks between Drake and Lamar went back and forth until Lamar dropped “Not Like Us” in 2024, where Lamar called the “Hotline Bling” singer a pedophile and a “colonizer.”

Most recently, Lamar won five Grammy Awards on Feb. 2 for his album GNX, which featured the diss track “Not Like Us.” He then performed it during the 2025 Super Bowl Halftime show on Feb. 9 in a set packed with Easter eggs.

Drake Kendrick Lamar

Drake in September 2019; Kendrick Lamar in August 2017.Karwai Tang/WireImage; Phillip Faraone/Getty

RZA’s appearance comes days after the Wu-Tang Clan announced their final tour taking place over the summer through June and July before wrapping in Philadelphia.

RZA also said that the Final Chamber Tour is “all of us coming back together:” “Every one of us showing that even through some of the hard times, some of the beefs, and gripes that we had, the unity and the community is what keeps us tight and united.”

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and guest RZA during Thursday’s February 27, 2025 show.

RZA and Stephen Colbert in February 2025.Scott Kowalchyk/CBS

On the tour, he added that the group will be “sharing our culture with the fans who saved us.” “Without art and culture, and I’m not shy to say this, some of us were high school dropouts, some of us got felonies on our rap sheet.”

“But the music and the arts and the culture saved our lives and this is our chance to go back out one more time together collectively and share our energy with our fans.”

The Wu-Tang Clan consists of Inspectah Deck, U-God, Ghostface Killah, Method Man, Raekwon, Masta Killa and Cappadonna. Ol’ Dirty Bastard died in 2004 at 35 years old.