The lore surrounding the rivalry between Kendrick Lamar and Drake is about as rich as anything on Game of Thrones, and it certainly requires a similar level of academic rigor.
For those who somehow missed it, the two rappers were involved in a heated feud earlier this year, trading increasingly intense allegations at each other in the form of call-and-response diss tracks throughout May and July. The quarrel came to a head with “Not Like Us”, the latest in Lamar’s long string of Drake diss tracks that levels accusations of sexual deviancy against the “God’s Plan” singer.
Throughout the track, which was released just 24 hours after the rapper’s third Drake diss track “meet the grahams”, Lamar doubles down on accusations of Drake being a snitch, a culture vulture, and a “certified pedophile”. One lyric of “Not Like Us” that requires particular attention arrives on the bridge, where Lamar continually chants the term “OV-Ho”.
So what exactly does that mean, and how does it relate to his broader accusations against Drake?
Kendrick Lamar’s OV-HOEs meaning
On the bridge of Kendrick Lamar’s diss track “Not Like Us”, the rapper asks listeners to “let me hear you say Ov-Hoe”, before repeating the term three times leading to the outro. It’s one of multiple lyrics in the track that begs explanation: the phrase is a reference to Drake’s record label, which is called OVO.
While the label itself is an acronym for October’s Very Own — a reference to the month of Drake’s birthday — Lamar changed the pronunciation for a call-and-response bridge that will involve audiences chanting the phrase back. As noted by music journalist Rob Markman, it was quite common for old-school rappers to include a “Say Hoooo” chant towards the end of their tracks to get crowds involved, and here Lamar uses that technique while also dissing Drake.
Changing the “O” to “Hoe” is seemingly part of Lamar’s broader comments about Drake’s sexual deviancy, which he alleges in great detail on “Not Like Us”. Lamar makes mention of Drake’s history of interacting with young women, alleging he has a preference for minors and warning people to “hide [their] little sister” from him.
Elsewhere, he outright calls Drake a “certified pedophile” — a reference to Drake’s 2021 album Certified Lover Boy — and labels him a “predator”. The cover art for the track, which seemingly shows an aerial view of Drake’s house, is edited in a way to resemble the sex offender registry, and Lamar insinuates the home is a hub for illegal sexual activity.
#OVHO has since become a popular hashtag online for users discussing the Drake and Lamar beef, and the music video for “Not Like Us” even features a disclaimer that reads: “no OVHoes were harmed during the making of this video.” Of course, it’s merely one insult hurled Drake’s way during this increasingly contentious beef, and Drake certainly has more to worry about than being branded an “OVHO”.