Hip-Hop Beef & Winner Predictions For 2015

This year has been a solid year in Hip-Hop especially for the authentic storytellers in the genre, however, there were a ton of beefs throughout the industry as fans would expect.

After this years biggest beefs, what might be some future beefs that arise in 2015?

Iggy Azalea vs. Hip-Hop

Well Iggy Azalea started out as one of the hottest female rappers in the game but now it looks like the whole industry is against her. J. Cole took shots at Azalea in his song "Fire Squad," Azealia Banks hand an ongoing feud with both Iggy and the man responsible for signing her, T.I., Q-Tip tried to shine some light onto the situation, Rah Digga addressed the validity of Azalea's lyrics and Lupe Fiasco tried to defend her.

At some point this has got to be getting Azalea a bit tired and T.I. a bit tired of defending her.

Azalea just happens to make music that people enjoy and is receiving recognition over artists who may arguably deserve it more than her.

So whats the prediction for 2015? It looks like the Azalea saga won't anytime soon, it seems like every week there is a new rapper or celebrity trying to weigh in on the situation so until someone holds a debate or intervention of some sort, Iggy Azalea will be fighting an uphill battle for 2015 against tons of names in the Hi-Hop genre.

Kendrick Lamar vs. The Fans

Kendrick Lamar referred to himself as "King Kendrick" in a BET Cypher where he even threw shots at rapper Drake (don't worry we will be getting to him in just a bit). That was a pretty big declaration especially following the original diss that started it all in his verse on "Control." How does he follow all of that up? By releasing two songs that sonically sound completely different from what fans got used to.

You really have to listen to the lyrics of "i" to realize that he is addressing the same subject matter he always has, that being said, the delivery and over all sound is so upbeat that fans who enjoy the gritty harsh delivery may feel torn.

Following the release of "i," Lamar performed an "Untitled" track on The Colbert Report that featured a more familiar delivery and a beat reminiscent of something off of his "Section 80." album.

With all of the back and forth from Lamar it might be confusing to his fans who are likely to speak their mind.

Drake vs. Drake

The only way that Drake could possibly lose his edge is by responding to anyone who has ever called him out. The funny thing about him is that almost every situation or beef that has started with Drake being called out ends after a simple meeting, for example, the beef with Common a few years ago.

Drake now has his OVO Label and a roster of artists who are becoming more and more popular: The Weeknd, PartyNextDoor, iLoveMakkonen and P. Reign.

Murda Mook took shots at Drake this year at the BET Awards and what did Drake do? He did nothing, and rightfully so because what resulted from that other than a push in Mook's career? It's now a thing of the pass just like the beef with Tyga and the slap from Diddy. It all happened and sure it sucks for Drake, however no one is talking about it anymore.

It just goes to show that the only thing that Drake can do to beat himself is try to respond to someone who disses him.

It's easy to argue that he went against his words in "Successful" where he said, "diss me and you'll never hear a reply from it," when he responded to Common's diss tracks with some of his own. However, that was just one instance in many disses that are thrown at the Young Money artist.

With "Views From The Six" scheduled for 2015 only Drake can defeat himself in 2015.

Winner of 2014 and Winners In 2015

There are a lot of factions being created in Hip-Hop with Slaughterhouse, TDE, Dreamville, OVO and A$AP Mob and those are the picks for the big winners in 2015. These factions all contain great lyricists and artists who know how to create a catchy song.

When each of the respective groups come together they create really impressive works but when they stand alone they are still able to create great bodies of work.

Fans should expect OVO and A$AP Mob to make a resurgence in 2015 after a pretty quiet 2014.

With Drake, A$AP Rocky and Kendrick Lamar expected to release new albums in 2015 they will be bringing back the argument for the young hip-hop category, but in 2014 J. Cole has proven himself to be a true individual artist and the winner of 2014.