Shia LaBeouf Diss Track: Actor’s Freestyle Calls Out Lil Yachty, Drake

Shia LaBeouf has now taken his love for obtuse performance art into the realm of hip-hop diss tracks. The Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull actor made headlines last week when he sent in an audio clip of his burgeoning emcee skills to radio station Power 105.1’s syndicated The Breakfast Club morning show. Breakfast Club host Charlamagne Tha God played Shia’s rap song on-air — to the apparent chagrin of some professional rappers. Listen to the cut below.

In the track, LaBeouf continues a previously-sparked lyrical feud with rapper Lil Yachty, and even elicits some fresh fodder for disparagement in the form of a knock on Canadian superstar Drake. Shia’s actor-turned-rapper portrayal apparently holds his tongue for no one, as the rap also contains seeming jabs at rival radio station Hot 97’s Peter Rosenberg, and action stars Jean-Claude Van Damme and Vin Diesel. Has Shia LaBeouf gone too far?

As reported by Entertainment Weekly, Shia LaBeouf first dissed Lil Yachty during a “Five Fingers of Death” freestyle rap match on SiriusXM show Sway in the Morning. Yachty then responded to LaBeouf with a diss track retort on another radio program. Per EW, Shia prefaced his most recent hip-hip outing on The Breakfast Club with an ostensibly earnest plea to host Charlamagne that he not be taken seriously as a rapper.

“Charlamagne, can you play this on your podcast? Excuse the quality. This is just on Voice Notes and YouTube beats, I’m not a rapper.”

In the clip, LaBeouf adds the Drake diss in the mix by claiming that something is “faker than Drake’s Jamaican accent.” According to USA Today, the beef between Shia and Peter Rosenberg was born when the Hot 97 host lampooned LaBeouf’s initial Sway in the Morning freestyle. Now, Shia appears to be biting back — the novice hip-hop artist seemingly takes no prisoners in his latest lo-fi hip-hop freestyle track.

Now, Hot New Hip Hop is reporting that Lil Yachty has already responded to Shia LaBeouf’s latest diss track. According to the rap music site, Yachty refuses to take Shia’s latest song seriously, and he claims to TMZ that the actor’s neophyte lyric-spitting skills are not “important enough” for him to take stock in. Lil Yachty apparently is going on the assumption that the entire situation is “all a joke” when questioned about the ongoing rap battle.

“He’s not important enough, not for me… I’m gonna tell it like this it was a joke to me. It’s all a joke. I feel like he’s way too serious.”

Shia LaBeouf is no stranger to controversy. After all, this is the same man who once wore a bag on his head, inscribed with the message “I Am Not Famous Anymore,” to a movie premiere event in Germany. More recently, Mr. LaBeouf has dabbled in all manners of outré performance art, from locking himself in an elevator for 24 hours and live streaming the outcome, to his now-infamous “Just Do It” motivational speech video.

Surprisingly or not, LaBeouf is also attempting a comeback as an actor. Shia recently starred in 2015’s Man Down, a gritty wartime film directed by Dito Montiel. His latest acting role in the road drama film American Honey has earned LaBeouf renewed critical acclaim — the portrayal nabbed Shia a “Best Supporting Male Actor” nomination at the Independent Spirit Awards. What’s your favorite Shia LaBeouf movie?

What do you think of Shia LaBeouf’s latest foray as a rapper? Do you like Shia’s freestyle diss tracks? Are you a fan of Lil Yachty? Let us know your thoughts on Shia LaBeouf as an underground hip-hop artist in the comments section below.

[Featured Image by Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images]