Serena Williams backpedals after taking several shots at Drake during the Kendrick Lamar beef

It’s been one year since Kendrick Lamar ignited one of the biggest rap feuds of all time against Drake. Tension between these two dates back to 2013, so there wasn’t any friendship that was spoiled. Although Drake helped popularize Lamar early in his career by taking him on tour and featuring on a song with him, all of it was a thing of the past.

Right from the start, the beef outlined their disdain for one another. As they continued to drop tracks one after the other, more people got involved. Everyone who had a bone to pick with Drake was seemingly siding with Lamar, including Drake’s ex-girlfriend Serena Williams.

The tennis legend was romantically involved with the rap superstar in the past. In fairness, Drake had mentioned her on several of his songs. He also took shots at her husband, Alexis Ohanian on "Middle of the Ocean," which might've played a role in her being openly against Drake.

However, when Williams took the stage during Lamar’s Super Bowl performance, the world was shocked. Williams was seen dancing to the tune “Not Like Us,” a diss track by Lamar, which is aimed at Drake.

With that decision, Williams seemingly made it clear where she stands in this equation. She later doubled down on her allegiance by stating, “If I’ve learned anything this year, it's that none of us, not a single one of us, not even me, should ever pick a fight with Kendrick Lamar.” She took a few more shots at Drake during the 2024 ESPYS, claiming that he might no longer be loved in his hometown.

Williams, who so proudly grooved to the tunes of NLU, a song that contained vile but unconfirmed allegations against Drake, is now claiming that her Crip walk during Super Bowl has been misinterpreted.

During a recent conversation with TIME, she said, “I would never do that. And that was sad, that anyone would ever think that. I respect how they could…Obviously, I can see how someone would think that. But absolutely not. I have never had negative feelings towards him. We've known him for so many years.”

Only Williams knows how she expected her Super Bowl performance to be interpreted. She has nothing to do with music or the entertainment business, aside from tennis. Still, she marked her presence at the Super Bowl. It’s unlikely that the 23-time Grand Slam winner will ever give a clear explanation on this subject.