'Not Like Us' at Super Bowl 59? Origins of the song fueled by Drake, Kendrick Lamar's feud

Since Kendrick Lamar's "Not Like Us" dropped in May, the song that served as a slap in the face to hip hop icon Drake has broken streaming records, won Lamar multiple Grammy awards and has become a hot topic ahead of the Compton rapper's highly anticipated Super Bowl 59 halftime performance.

As contemporaries, Lamar and Drake have each carved out successful musical careers with multiple No. 1 songs (five for Lamar, 13 for Drake) on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. The two have even appeared on songs together, including on Lamar's "Poetic Justice," A$AP Rocky's 'F**kin' Problems" and Drake's "Buried Alive Interlude."

The feud between the rappers reached a new high last year after Lamar included the following on "Like That" by Metro Boomin and Future: "These (expletive) talkin' out of they necks. Don't pull no coffin out of your mouth, I'm way too paranoid for a threat. Ayy-ayy, let's get it, bro. D-O-T, the money, power, respect. The last one is better. Say, it's a lot of goofies with a check."

Then the Californian and Canadian released diss songs about one another. Before the 2024 beef caused a stir among hip-hop fans across the globe, the two rappers seemed to be at odds for years, but not publicly as they both traded much more subtle shots at one another in several songs, including Lamar on Big Sean's "Control."

"Where it became an issue is that I was rolling out an album while that verse was still bubbling, so my album rollout became about this thing," Drake said about "Control" during an interview with Vibe Magazine. "What am I supposed to say? Nah, we’ll be buddy-buddy? Mind you, I never once said he’s a bad guy [or] I don’t like him. I think he’s a … genius in his own right, but I also stood my ground as I should."

Now with the beef back in the headlines as Lamar prepares to perform at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on Sunday, USA TODAY is looking back at the beef and how "Not Like Us" became a controversial and catchy mainstream hit.

How did Kendrick Lamar and Drake meet?

Drake and Lamar began as collaborators who respected one another's talents. In 2014, Drake even posted a now-deleted Instagram video of him rapping over Lamar's song “Cut You Off” from his 2010 "Overly Dedicated" project, Vibes reported.

In a 2011 interview with XXL, Lamar said he and Drake "clicked immediately," describing the rapper as a "genuine soul" and the first person outside of his own team to hear his debut album "Section 80." Drake soon invited Lamar to feature on "Buried Alive Interlude," which is off his second studio album, "Take Care."

In addition to praising Drake during the interview with XXL, Lamar explained how they originally met during his first-ever show in Toronto on June 16, 2011.

"My first show in Toronto. I think it was the same night, we was going back to the hotel, and he hit my phone," Lamar recalled. "We met up, chilled out, got to vibe, see where each other was at and (expletive) ... That’s a real good dude."

How did Drake and Kendrick Lamar's relationship sour?

When Big Sean released "Control" featuring Lamar and New Orleans-born rapper Jay Electronica in 2013, the rap world went into a frenzy due to the subtle but clear jabs said throughout the record, primarily by Lamar.

On the song, Lamar calls out most of his contemporaries, including J. Cole, Meek Mill, Drake, Big K.R.I.T., Wale, Pusha T, A$AP Rocky, Mac Miller, Big Sean, Jay Electronica and Tyler, the Creator.

"I got love for you all but I'm trying to murder you (expletive). Trying to make sure your core fans never heard of you (expletive). They don't want to hear not one more noun or verb from you (expletive)," Lamar raps on "Control."

Following Drake's interview with Vibe Magazine, the two rappers continued to trade subliminal shots at one another, Genius, a company that deciphers and annotates song lyrics, said.

According to Genius, some of the songs the two have traded words on include Lamar's “The Heart Part 4," Drake's "The Language," Lamar on rapper Jay Rock's song "Pay For It," Drake's "Used To," Drake's “6 PM In New York,” Lamar's "King Kunta," Drake on rapper The Game's song "100," Lamar's “Darkside/Gone,” Lamar on rapper Dr. Dre's song "Deep Water," Drake's "Summer Sixteen" and Lamar's "Untitled 07 | 2014-2016.”

Kendrick Lamar and Drake feud ramps up in 2024

During J. Cole's verse on his and Drake's 2023 hit song "First Person Shooter," he refers to himself, Drake and Lamar as the "big three" of the current rap game. He also likened himself to legendary boxer and activist Muhammad Ali.

Months later, Lamar responded to J. Cole's verse on Metro Boomin and Future's 2024 song "Like That," in which he claims that there isn't a "big three" and "it's just big me." In April 2024, a month after "Like That" came out, Drake released "Push Ups" and "Taylor Made Freestyle" as diss tracks toward Lamar.

On April 30, 2024, nearly two weeks after Drake's songs, Lamar responded with "Euphoria," a six-minute diss track directed at Drake. The following week, on May 3, Lamar dropped "6:16 in LA" via his Instagram. This prompted Drake to release "Family Matters" the same day, which in turn led to Lamar dropping his "Meet the Grahams" response record.

Both "Family Matters" and "Meet the Grahams" contained deeply personal accusations, including Lamar allegedly being unfaithful and domestically abusive to his fiancée, and Drake allegedly having a secret daughter. Both rappers have denied these claims publicly and scoffed at the accusations.

Less than 24 hours after the barrage of diss songs, Lamar dropped "Not Like Us" on May 4, which led to a response from Drake two days later on "The Heart Pt. 6."

Why is 'Not Like Us' controversial?

When Lamar's "Not Like Us' debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on May 13, 2024, people across the world were singing along to lyrics that accused Drake and his team of being pedophiles due to rumors of them liking younger women, hard drug users and cultural colonizers on account of them primarily being from Canada. Drake has publicly denied all the claims.

To this day, "Not Like Us" continues to chart as the song has seemingly expanded past the beef with Drake and become a phenomenon of its own. Lamar got to see the public's reaction to the song when he gave his first live performance of "Not Like Us" during his one-off Juneteenth concert, The Pop Off, at Kia Forum outside Los Angeles. Lamar closed the show by performing the song five times in a row.

Things escalated when a company owned by Drake filed a motion in New York accusing Universal Music Group (UMG) and Spotify of inflating streaming numbers following the success of "Not Like Us" and the NFL's decision to make Lamar Super Bowl 59's halftime performer. Drake then filed a second motion in Texas alleging UMG engaged in a "pay-to-play" scheme and committed defamation by allowing "Not Like Us" to be released. Both rappers have distribution deals with UMG, which subsequently denied Drake's allegations.

By mid-January, Drake's attorneys dropped those motions and filed a federal lawsuit in the Southern District of New York against UMG, according to court documents obtained by USA TODAY. It accuses UMG of "corporate greed" in their promotion of Lamar's song, which alleges that Drake is a "certified pedophile." The document states that Drake was targeted by armed intruders at his Toronto home and had to remove his young son and the boy's mother from the city due to the song's popularity.

"UMG wants the public to believe that this is a fight between rappers, but this lawsuit is not brought against Kendrick Lamar. This lawsuit reveals the human and business consequences to UMG’s elevation of profits over the safety and well-being of its artists, and shines a light on the manipulation of artists and the public for corporate gain," Drake's legal team wrote in a statement to USA TODAY.

UMG has responded to Drake's lawsuit, calling his claims "illogical" and "contrived," Complex reported. The music company also requested the lawsuit's dismissal, according to the outlet.

Now Lamar may add more fuel to the fire if he performs "Not Like Us" during his Super Bowl halftime performance this Sunday.

How to watch Super Bowl halftime show 2025

The Super Bowl 59 halftime show will take place on Sunday, Feb. 9, at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans. It will be broadcast nationally on FOX between the end of the second quarter and the beginning of the third quarter of the big football game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles.

• Date: Sunday, Feb. 9

• TV: FOX

• Time: 6:30 p.m. ET (Super Bowl start time)

• Streaming: Fox Sports app, Fubo (free trial)

• Location: Caesars Superdome (New Orleans)

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kendrick Lamar vs. Drake: Origin of 'Not Like Us' ahead of Super Bowl