“Not Like Us” just might end up as the biggest highlight of the Super Bowl. Kendrick Lamar was already considered one of the greatest rappers of all-time well before he delivered the ultimate knockout punch to end his beef with Drake. Lamar released a generation-defining album with 2012’s “Good Kid, M.A.A.D City,” and a high-brow, critically acclaimed follow-up with 2015’s “To Pimp a Butterfly.” The Compton native had enough hits to sell out stadiums and headline music festivals around the world for the rest of his career, but dropping “Not Like Us” pushed him into the stratosphere.
Lamar is the 2025 Super Bowl halftime performer, and he’s set to bring his signature hit to an audience of more than 120 million people expected to watch on TV. He’s reportedly going to play “Not Like Us” despite the song being at the center of a lawsuit from Drake seeking damages for defamation, harassment, and financial harm.
“Not Like Us” was a five-time winner at the 2025 Grammy Awards, including the prestigious “Record of the Year” award. If you haven’t heard this song by now, you are probably living under a rock. Check out “Not Like Us” — which is intended for mature audiences only — and then we’ll explain how the song came to be.
The rap beef between Lamar and Drake started with Drake’s “First Person Shooter.” In the song, J. Cole rapped that he was part of a “Big Three” with Kendrick and Drake as the defining voices in contemporary rap. Lamar responded with a verse in “Like That” off an album by Metro Boomin and Future saying “********** the big three, it’s just big me”.
Drake responded with a Lamar diss track called “Push-Ups,” which primarily mocked Lamar for being short and having tiny feet. Drake landed some zingers on the track, but he also woke up a monster in the process.
Drake followed with another Lamar diss in “Taylor Made Freestyle,” which asserted the rapper bowed down to Taylor Swift and included an AI Tupac voice. Lamar responded with the venomous “Euphoria.” From there, Lamar released “6:16 in LA,” Drake released “Family Matters,” and Lamar dropped a sinister track called “Meet the Grahams.”
Then it was time for the haymaker. Lamar dropped “Not Like Us,” which instantly turned into the biggest hit of the beef, (arguably) the biggest song of Lamar’s career, and (arguably) the biggest hit in music in 2024. The song made multiple references to Drake’s alleged relationships with minors, and featured a wonderfully fun beat by famed West Coast producer DJ Mustard.
You can read the “Not Like Us” lyrics and an explanation of their meaning over at Genius.
Suddenly, audiences around the world were dancing and rapping every line to song that alleged Drake of unsavory and illegal things. As the song was taking off, Lamar hosted a concert on Juneteenth at The Forum in Inglewood, CA. The song was performed over and over, with multiple celebrity guests popping up throughout.
Even the cover art of “Not Like Us” is a nod to the allegations Lamar is making in the song.
In Jan., Drake filed a lawsuit against Universal Music Group and other parties alleging that the music industry conspired to make the song a hit and ruin his reputation. You can read a bigger explanation of the lawsuit here.
After cleaning up at the Grammys, Lamar is now taking “Not Like Us” to the Super Bowl.
“Not Like Us” just might end up as the biggest highlight of the Super Bowl.
Kendrick Lamar was already considered one of the greatest rappers of all-time well before he delivered the ultimate knockout punch to end his beef with Drake. Lamar released a generation-defining album with 2012’s “Good Kid, M.A.A.D City,” and a high-brow, critically acclaimed follow-up with 2015’s “To Pimp a Butterfly.” The Compton native had enough hits to sell out stadiums and headline music festivals around the world for the rest of his career, but dropping “Not Like Us” pushed him into the stratosphere.
Lamar is the 2025 Super Bowl halftime performer, and he’s set to bring his signature hit to an audience of more than 120 million people expected to watch on TV. He’s reportedly going to play “Not Like Us” despite the song being at the center of a lawsuit from Drake seeking damages for defamation, harassment, and financial harm.
“Not Like Us” was a five-time winner at the 2025 Grammy Awards, including the prestigious “Record of the Year” award. If you haven’t heard this song by now, you are probably living under a rock. Check out “Not Like Us” — which is intended for mature audiences only — and then we’ll explain how the song came to be.
The rap beef between Lamar and Drake started with Drake’s “First Person Shooter.” In the song, J. Cole rapped that he was part of a “Big Three” with Kendrick and Drake as the defining voices in contemporary rap. Lamar responded with a verse in “Like That” off an album by Metro Boomin and Future saying “********** the big three, it’s just big me”.
Drake responded with a Lamar diss track called “Push-Ups,” which primarily mocked Lamar for being short and having tiny feet. Drake landed some zingers on the track, but he also woke up a monster in the process.
Drake followed with another Lamar diss in “Taylor Made Freestyle,” which asserted the rapper bowed down to Taylor Swift and included an AI Tupac voice. Lamar responded with the venomous “Euphoria.” From there, Lamar released “6:16 in LA,” Drake released “Family Matters,” and Lamar dropped a sinister track called “Meet the Grahams.”
Then it was time for the haymaker. Lamar dropped “Not Like Us,” which instantly turned into the biggest hit of the beef, (arguably) the biggest song of Lamar’s career, and (arguably) the biggest hit in music in 2024. The song made multiple references to Drake’s alleged relationships with minors, and featured a wonderfully fun beat by famed West Coast producer DJ Mustard.
You can read the “Not Like Us” lyrics and an explanation of their meaning over at Genius.
Suddenly, audiences around the world were dancing and rapping every line to song that alleged Drake of unsavory and illegal things. As the song was taking off, Lamar hosted a concert on Juneteenth at The Forum in Inglewood, CA. The song was performed over and over, with multiple celebrity guests popping up throughout.
Even the cover art of “Not Like Us” is a nod to the allegations Lamar is making in the song.
In Jan., Drake filed a lawsuit against Universal Music Group and other parties alleging that the music industry conspired to make the song a hit and ruin his reputation. You can read a bigger explanation of the lawsuit here.
After cleaning up at the Grammys, Lamar is now taking “Not Like Us” to the Super Bowl.