Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Not Like Us’ victory lap: Compton fans pop out for music video shoot
Searching for rap fans sick and tired of Kendrick Lamar‘s irresistible”Not Like Us?” You won’t find them in the rapper’s native Compton.
Days after rocking the Kia Forum with his “Pop Out — Ken & Friends” concert on Juneteenth, Lamar filmed his “Not Like Us” at various landmarks in and around Compton, where more than 1,000 fans turned out for a chance to star in his latest music video. Over the weekend, the Pulitzer Prize and Grammy Award winner filmed at locations including Compton City Hall, Enterprise Park, Nickerson Gardens and Tam’s Burgers.
In photos and videos shared on social media, Lamar and “Not Like Us” collaborator DJ Mustard can be seen dancing to the song in front of Tam’s Burgers (previously featured in the L.A.-centric Super Bowl LVI set) as onlookers sing along. Another video shows scores of fans bouncing along to the hit’s catchy beat with Lamar near the Compton Courthouse.
This was Lamar’s first live set in Southern California since he and Drake scorched the earth with reams of diss tracks that topped charts and changed their legacies forever.
“COMPTON. PERIOD,” the Compton Cowboys captioned an Instagram photo of Lamar dancing with a crowd.
In addition to local fans, musicians Steve Lacy, Thundercat, Roddy Ricch and YG and NBA star DeMar DeRozan were in attendance, according to several social media posts. The star power for Lamar’s video shoot carried over from his “Pop Out” concert, which also served as a celebration of West Coast hip-hop.
During the one-night performance, Lamar and Mustard welcomed L.A. luminaries including music mogul Dr. Dre, L.A. Clipper Russell Westbrook, radio host Big Boy and many, many more to the Forum stage during their respective sets.
At the Juneteenth show, Lamar offered his fans a mix of old and new music — including five consecutive performances of “Not Like Us,” his not-so-subtle diss track against Drake. Since March, the hip-hop icons have traded diss tracks, with each alleging concerning behavior by the other. In “Meet the Grahams” and “Not Like Us,” Lamar accused Drake of child sexual abuse and disrespecting Tupac Shakur. In “Family Matters,” Drake (real name Aubrey Graham) accused Lamar of domestic abuse.
DJ Mustard, like most Kendrick Lamar fans, was in disbelief when he first heard the rapper’s ‘Not Like Us’ — even though he provided the song’s extremely catchy beat.
Lamar dropped “Not Like Us” in May and it became a near-instant hit. It also seemingly put the Lamar-Drake feud to rest — at least for now.
It’s unclear when Lamar will release the “Not Like Us” music video; representatives for the rapper did not immediately respond to The Times’ request for comment Monday. What is clear is that whenever the video drops, “Not Like Us” may be on repeat for Lamar’s L.A. fans — and Compton co-stars — once again.
Times staff writer Kailyn Brown and staff photographer Michael Blackshire contributed to this report.
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