Drake has called out fellow rapper DJ Khaled over lack of public support for Palestine on a track from his newly released album Iceman.
The Canadian rapper surprised fans by releasing three albums on Friday – Iceman, Maid of Honour and Habibti – but one lyric in particular has drawn attention for directly referencing Palestine and DJ Khaled’s silence on the Israel-Gaza war.
“Your people are still waiting for a ‘Free Palestine,’ but apparently everything isn't black and white and red and green. I'm seeing everyone's true colours, for real,” Drake raps on the song titled Make Them Pay.
The lyrics are a pointed criticism of Khaled, who is of Palestinian descent and has faced backlash from some fans and activists for not publicly speaking about Gaza during the ongoing war.
Drake, who is Jewish, has never directly commented on the conflict, but has shown support for Palestine in the past. In October 2023, he signed the Artists4Ceasefire letter calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, and in August 2025, he was seen acknowledging pro-Palestine protesters from his hotel balcony in Copenhagen.
Calls for Khaled to speak up are not new. In 2024, the rapper's cousin, Palestinian-American social entrepreneur and former Dubai Bling cast member Fadie Musallet, told The National that the producer’s silence had deeply disappointed Palestinians.
“Khaled always wanted to go to Palestine, but I don’t think he can come there now,” Musallet said. “They are really hurt by the lack of support, they feel like they have been let down.”
Musallet also questioned why Khaled, who had previously spoken out during the Black Lives Matter protests, had remained silent on Gaza.
“At some point there must be a stage where you have to ask yourself how much money is enough,” he told The National. “And I know that Khaled is not afraid to use his important voice as he did before, during the Black Lives Matter protests. So what has changed now?”
Drake officially launched what he called his “Iceman era” on Thursday night through the fourth episode of his livestream series, announcing that all three albums would drop simultaneously at midnight ET.
