As excited as fans were for Drake and 21 Savage’s joint album Her Loss after its tongue-in-cheek rollout, the actual product has proven to be more controversial than anything else in its first 12 hours. Two of Drake’s music industry industry peers have spoken out against some of the lyrical content, he’s facing backlash for references to one of them, and now, another public figure he apparently mentions on the album has some thoughts.
On the song “Middle Of The Ocean,” Drake returns to his “timestamp song” formula, rapping for five minutes uninterrupted to show off his lyrical prowess. One line in particular, though, has captured much of the attention. “I swear you don’t even mean what y’all say like y’all dubbin’ a movie,” he raps. “Sidebar, Serena, your husband a groupie / He claim we don’t got a problem but no, boo, it is like you comin’ for sushi.” Dubious wordplay aside, many fans assumed that the Serena to whom Drake refers here is Serena Williams, with whom he was supposedly romantically linked briefly in 2015. That would make her husband Alexis Ohanian, best known as the co-founder of Reddit.
Ohanian caught wind of the potential reference and apparently replied on Twitter as part of a longer thread on their relationship and fatherhood. Posting a photo of himself and the couple’s daughter Olivia watching Serena play from the stands, he joked, “The reason I stay winning is because I’m relentless about being the absolute best at whatever I do — including being the best groupie for my wife & daughter.”
The reason I stay winning is because I’m relentless about being the absolute best at whatever I do — including being the best groupie for my wife & daughter. pic.twitter.com/oaEKuRWFnj
— AlexisOhanian7️⃣7️⃣6️⃣ (@alexisohanian) November 4, 2022
Elsewhere on the album, Drake makes apparent references to both DRAM and Megan Thee Stallion, garnering him a critical reaction on Twitter.