You’ve probably heard it at a wedding, a backyard BBQ, or maybe just blasting from a car at a red light. That West Coast bounce. That Mustard-produced beat. That relentless "WOP WOP WOP WOP WOP." Honestly, it’s hard to escape. We’re talking about Not Like Us, the song that didn’t just win a rap feud—it basically rewrote the record books for Kendrick Lamar.
For years, if you asked anyone about Kendrick’s "biggest" track, they’d point to HUMBLE. or maybe Alright. But things changed fast in 2024 and 2025. Not Like Us has now officially surpassed his previous hits in almost every metric that actually matters. It’s not just a "diss track" anymore; it’s a cultural phenomenon that’s still sitting high on the charts well into 2026.
The Numbers Are Actually Kind Of Ridiculous
If you look at the raw data, the shift is staggering. By mid-January 2025, Not Like Us had already cleared a billion streams on Spotify. That’s fast. Like, record-breaking fast. It hit that milestone in just nine months, making it the fastest rap song to ever do it.
To put that in perspective, HUMBLE.—which was the undisputed king of Kendrick’s discography for nearly a decade—took much longer to reach those heights. The momentum didn't stop there. According to Luminate and Billboard data, the song spent a staggering 52 consecutive weeks on the Hot 100. It’s the first rap song in history to stay on the charts for a full year without dropping off once.
- Fastest rap song to 100M, 200M, up to 700M streams.
- Most-streamed rap song in a single day (12.8 million).
- Longest-running No. 1 on the Hot Rap Songs chart.
Then came the 2025 Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show. You might remember the headlines. Streams for the track spiked by a wild 430% in the hours following the performance. People weren't just listening to it as a "Drake diss" anymore. They were listening to it as the definitive anthem of modern West Coast hip-hop.
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Why This Song Hit Differently Than "HUMBLE."
"HUMBLE." was a massive pop-rap moment, sure. It had that Mike WiLL Made-It piano chop that felt like a punch to the gut. But Not Like Us tapped into something deeper: a collective cultural moment.
DJ Mustard—the man responsible for the "ratchet" sound that dominated the 2010s—provided a beat that felt nostalgic yet fresh. It brought back the "fun" in Kendrick’s music while he was delivering some of the most scathing lyrics of his career. It’s a weird paradox. You’re dancing to a song that is, at its core, a complete character assassination.
There's also the "boogeyman" factor. Before 2024, Kendrick was often seen as the "conscious" rapper—the Pulitzer Prize winner who made deep, introspective albums like To Pimp a Butterfly. He was respected, but some people found his music "too smart" for the club. Not Like Us changed that narrative instantly. It proved he could make a massive, catchy-as-hell radio hit without sacrificing his lyrical sharp edge.
The GNX Era and Continued Dominance
While Not Like Us is the undisputed heavyweight, Kendrick didn’t just sit on his laurels. His 2024 album GNX kept the fire burning. Songs like "Luther" (with SZA) and "TV Off" actually joined Not Like Us in the top three of the Billboard Hot 100 simultaneously in early 2025. That’s a feat only a handful of artists, like The Beatles or Taylor Swift, have ever pulled off.
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The "Grand National Tour" with SZA in 2025 also cemented his status. It became the highest-grossing tour by a Black male artist in history, raking in over $11 million in a single night at AT&T Stadium. Every night, when the beat for Not Like Us dropped, the energy was reportedly unlike anything else in the set. Sometimes he’d play it five or six times in a row, and the crowd never got tired of it.
What This Means for You (The Actionable Part)
If you're a casual fan or even a creator looking at why this worked, there are some real takeaways here.
1. Don’t ignore the back catalog. Since the release of this hit, Kendrick’s entire discography saw a 49% jump in streams. If you’re just getting into him now, go back to good kid, m.A.A.d city. It’s where the storytelling roots are.
2. Watch the charts, but trust the "feel." Numbers like 1.44 billion streams are great, but the reason Not Like Us is his most popular song is because it transitioned from a "moment" to a "staple." It's now a part of the cultural lexicon.
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3. Recognize the shift in hip-hop. We’re seeing a move away from the "streaming farm" era toward music that has real-world impact. This song succeeded despite (or maybe because of) the legal drama and industry pushback.
If you’re trying to build a playlist that defines this era of music, Not Like Us has to be the centerpiece. It represents the moment the "conscious" king of rap became the undisputed king of the charts.
To truly understand the impact, go back and watch the music video directed by Dave Free and Kendrick himself. Pay attention to the symbolism—the owl in the cage, the hopscotch, the family cameos. It’s a masterclass in how to turn a song into a visual statement that lives forever.