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Kendrick Lamar · S8 E5
Not Like Us
DJ Mustard's beat, a worldwide number one, and the diss track that became a summer anthem
May 4, 2024. DJ Mustard's beat drops, and within 48 hours every club, every car, every cookout in America is playing the same four words: "They not like us."
Kendrick Lamar, Not Like Us (official music video, 2024). Filmed entirely in Compton. Kendrick surrounded by his city, dancing in the streets, claiming his block while every bar hits Drake where it hurts. This isn't just a diss track video. It's a victory parade.
Not Like Us, Kendrick Lamar (2024)
Produced by DJ Mustard, the beat is pure West Coast: a bouncing, hypnotic drum pattern designed for car speakers and block parties. While meet the grahams was surgical and personal, Not Like Us is a chant, a rallying cry you can shout with your windows down. Listen for how Kendrick's delivery stays loose and almost playful, not rapping angry but rapping like he already won.
Sources
Kendrick Lamar. "Not Like Us." pgLang / Aftermath / Interscope, 2024.
“When I made that beat, I knew. I called Kendrick and said, 'This is the one.' He sent it back the same day.”
— DJ Mustard on producing Not Like Us, interview, 2024
The Song of the Summer
Not Like Us didn't just win the beef. It became the most inescapable song of 2024. The hook crossed over from hip-hop into pop, sports, and meme culture overnight. It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and stayed in the conversation for months.
Sources
Billboard Hot 100 chart history, 2024
Compton, California
Kendrick filmed the Not Like Us music video in the streets of his hometown. The video turns Compton into a celebration, every block a stage, every corner a declaration of where he comes from.
TAP TO REVEAL: How many times did Not Like Us reach number one on the Hot 100?
Who produced Not Like Us?
dodger blue, Kendrick Lamar ft. Wallie the Sensei, Siete7x & Roddy Ricch (2024)
From GNX. If Not Like Us was Kendrick claiming his crown, "dodger blue" is the after-party. Pure Los Angeles: multiple LA artists, a West Coast beat, and Kendrick sounding like the king of a city that just went to war for him. Roddy Ricch adds Compton-to-Compton chemistry.
dodger blue, Kendrick Lamar ft. Wallie the Sensei, Siete7x & Roddy Ricch (2024)
Read the lyrics while you listen. Kendrick fills the track with LA references, from the Dodgers to specific neighborhoods. Where Not Like Us was aimed at one person, this is aimed at an entire city: a love letter to Los Angeles dressed up as a rap song.
Not Like Us
The song is everywhere. Now Kendrick needs a stage big enough to match it. On Juneteenth 2024, he books The Forum in Inglewood, invites every West Coast legend alive, and plays Not Like Us five times in a row. Next: The Pop Out.
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