Screenshot of Kendrick Lamar performing at The Pop Out: Ken and Friends (Credit: Amazon Music, X).
Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” is the song of the year and the best diss track in Hip-hop history. Much to its target’s detriment—Drake—it’s been played everywhere, from sporting events and school functions to cookouts and bar mitzvahs.
Its omnipresence was evident during Lamar’s “The Pop Out: Ken & Friends” show at the Kia Forum via Amazon Prime—and on Juneteenth, no less.
As a pop culture milestone, this televised event, which earned the most minutes watched of any Amazon Music production, showcased a tongue-lashing not seen since that Verzuz battle between The Lox and Dipset.
The Compton, California rapper blitzed through his Drake annihilating “Not Like Us” track FIVE TIMES, with NBA superstars Russell Westbrook and DeMar DeRozan joining him on stage during one rendition. Other Hip-hop luminaries like Mustard, YG and affiliates ScHoolboy Q, Ab-Soul and Jay Rock joined the party, dapping up Lamar as he performed.
Even LeBron James was there, but the Akron, Ohio native remained off stage.
Let’s just say when it comes to one-sided battles, Lamar’s lead over Drake grew from insurmountable to incalculable.
Remember when the ‘85 Bears bludgeoned the Patriots in the Super Bowl?
Remember when a girl named Sharkeisha went viral for bolo-punching some poor girl into oblivion?
This was worse.
The entire West Coast came out and stomped a figurative, continent-sized hole in Drake’s chest, all while wearing some Nike Shox.
At one point, various LA gang sets came together onstage in a show of unity, providing a profound Juneteenth moment.
As with any culturally significant event, Lamar’s ‘Pop-Out’ lent itself to dozens of hilarious, poignant and insightful social media responses.
We collected the best ones with some context mixed in, in case you were unaware of the breaking news.
Coming Together For ‘A Cause’
As one guy observed on X, the show felt like an all-star benefit from 40 years ago, except providing humanitarian aid wasn’t the goal.
The Savagery and Tragedy
Creating a string of diss songs against an enemy, with one becoming a sonic sensation, is a new level of savagery. Lamar performing “Not Like Us” had one X user comparing it to an infamous encounter involving an elephant.
https://t.co/lRAcSlxTmv pic.twitter.com/YG2PLz7qq0
— ✨ (@geegucks) June 20, 2024
Drake’s Reaction?
To confirm, Lamar performed it five times, but these tweets highlighted Drake’s possible reaction to it all:
What Amazon Execs Must Be Thinking
In true Amazon fashion, the hate toward Drake felt so immediate:
But the proceeds it generated should have Amazon feeling like this:
Who All Gonna Be Over There
Snoop declared Lamar the “King of The West” for bringing everyone together the way he did.
Having the LA-born DeRozan and Westbrook up on that stage was another feather in his crown.
🚨RUSSEL WESTBROOK AND DEMAR DEROZAN GO ON STAGE WITH KENDRICK LAMAR TO PERFORM “NOT LIKE US” pic.twitter.com/EEKLjFzGaj
— bobo (@ohitsbobo) June 20, 2024
One user mused that LeBron (in the white ballcap) probably wanted to join them but was under a strict warning not to by his wife, Savannah:
One Rapper Who Wasn’t There
When the beef between Lamar and Drake was brewing, many believed the Game defended the Canadian rapper over his fellow Compton, California compadre.
Was that why he was absent or left off the guest list? We’re not sure, but perhaps his keycard didn’t work.
The Game, when he tried to walk into the Forum: pic.twitter.com/3Odn6q0b5Y
— Suge Lite (@Hempsism) June 20, 2024
A Whole Coast United
The West Coast came together to take down a common enemy.
But Hip-hop won, and in turn, the concert yielded us one of the most profound images in recent memory:
Given that it was Kendrick who did it, this edit seemed more fitting:
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