Did the Beatles Create the First Diss Track in History? The 1968 Song That Fuels the Debate To This Day

Long before modern rap rivalries turned diss tracks into cultural phenomena, the Beatles were embroiled in a similar controversy. The song in question is "Sexy Sadie", released in 1968 on the album known as "White Album". Originally, John Lennon wrote the song as a direct attack on Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the spiritual leader who had received the band members on his retreat in India. Lennon was deeply disappointed after rumors surrounding the guru's behavior and decided to express his frustration through music. In early versions of the lyrics, the Maharishi's name appeared explicitly. However, the other Beatles considered that the approach could generate problems and convinced Lennon to modify the text before release. The result was "Sexy Sadie", a song that kept virtually all of the original reviews but replaced the direct target with a fictional character. Because of this origin, many music historians consider the track to be one of the first great "diss tracks" in modern rock, anticipating a practice that decades later would become common in several musical genres. The song remains one of the most fascinating examples of how personal conflicts can be transformed into art and continues to spark debate among fans and scholars of the Beatles' work.