Unnecessary Hip-Hop Beefs That Never Should’ve Happened

Hip-hop beef is as American as apple pie. MCs have been trading barbs for decades, beginning with one of the earliest beefs on record: the Roxanne Wars in 1984. A teenaged Roxanne Shanté and producer Marley Marl dropped “Roxanne’s Revenge,” a diss track aimed at U.T.F.O. The feud exploded throughout the rap community, with several other rappers jumping in with their own contributions.

Obliterating each other on wax quickly became engrained in the culture. Then the Bridge Wars popped off between MC Shan and KRS-One in 1985. MC Shan and Marley Marl released “The Bridge,” a track that definitively stated hip-hop originated in Queensbridge. KRS-One and Boogie Down Productions responded with “South Bronx” the following year, claiming hip-hop started at 1520 Sedgwick Ave. in the Bronx. The beef ultimately ended in 1987, with Boogie Down Productions’ release of “The Bridge Is Over.” LL COOL J and Kool Moe Dee also sparred in the 1980s, as did Salt-N-Pepa, Slick Rick and Doug E. Fresh.

Now, there’s no shortage of rap feuds that have managed to keep fans entertained. Aside from more serious feuds like the tragic East Coast-West Coast rivalry that resulted in the deaths of Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G., most spats are amicably resolved over time. After all, this is hip-hop, and trading venomous bars is par for the course. As part of XXL‘s ongoing celebration of 50 years of hip-hop, take a look at 20 more modern-day beefs that probably never should’ve happened—from Jim Jones and Pusha T to Azealia Banks and, well, everybody.