Idolator

Just in time to come off looking like it’s taking cues from Elle (with it’s split cover package featuring  Britney Spears and Lady Gaga), the relaunch issue of Vibe has arrived, and its big gimmick is… split covers.  One version trumpets the 2009 It Boy of collaborations, Drake, while Chris Brown (once called “the future of R&B” by the same mag) is splashed across the face of the other. Genius, right?

It’s certainly not the most understated effort to grab a piece of the continuing post-Rihanna drama: more and more these two may be seen as arch rivals in the public eye. Drake was rumored (with very little denying) to be the first guy to date Rihanna after Chris did… well, ya know. And Chris even calls Drake out in his incredibly subtle song “Famous Girl,” singing, “Drake would say that you’re the best he ever had,” in one of many lines directed at his ex.

Vibe also continues with the hero-villain set up online — on its website, the magazine titled its blog entries promoting the issue “Everybody Hates Chris” and “Everybody Loves Drake” in case anyone missed the point. It’ll be interesting to see whose cover sells better — the nice guy, or the guy everyone loves to hate?