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The Year in Music 2024: Kendrick takes ‘Control’ of his narrative

Written by on December 30, 2024

Kendrick Lamar‘s had quite the year, and it all kicked off with his verse on “Like That.” 

On the song by Metro Boomin and Future, he threw shots at Drake and J. Cole, referencing their “First Person Shooter” collab and some of its lyrics.

“Motherf*** the big three, n****, it’s just big me,” Lamar raps. “F*** sneak dissin’, first-person shooter, I hope they came with three switches.”

Cole responded with “7 Minute Drill,” a song featured on his 12-track EP Might Delete Later, and eventually apologized, explaining he gave into the peer pressure from fans and social media. Though Drake had made comments onstage, his first response through song was on the previously leaked “Push Ups (Drop and Give Me 50)” and “Taylor Made Freestyle,” officially kicking off the heated back-and-forth between the two.

Among the songs exchanged were K. Dot’s “Euphoria” and “6:16 in LA,” followed by Drake’s “Family Matters.” Kendrick immediately responded with “Meet the Grahams,” where he accused Drake of pedophilia, sexual misconduct and more. Perhaps the most popular diss track of the feud was the next song, “Not Like Us.” The beef wrapped with Drake’s “The Heart Pt. 6.”

But “Not Like Us” would take on a life of its own, bringing people together and to the dance floor, as seen in the music video and the debut performance of the song at Kendrick’s Pop Out event on Juneteenth.

The song has since debuted at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the Billboard 200. It won Song of the Year, Best Hip Hop Video and Impact Track at the BET Hip Hop Awards, also picking up Top Rap Song at the Billboard Music Awards, as well as nominations for the VMAs and the upcoming 2025 Grammy Awards. “Not Like Us” is also on a few year-end charts, earning the second spot on Spotify’s U.S. Most-Streamed Songs, Vevo’s most-watched music videos list and Rolling Stone‘s list of the 100 best songs of 2024. 

“Not Like Us” had the Top US Premiere of 2024 on Vevo and was the 10th most viral song globally on Spotify. Of the $15.4 million the Drake/Kendrick feud earned this year, Lamar, named among Spotify’s top U.S. Most-Streamed Artists in 2024, made more: “Not Like Us” generated about $7.6 million in streaming, sales and publishing revenue, Billboard reported. 

Also in 2024, Kendrick was announced as the headliner of the 2025 Super Bowl halftime show in New Orleans, which prompted several conversations, some of which questioned whether Lil Wayne got snubbed out of performing in his hometown.

K. Dot eventually addressed the controversy on “Wacced Out Murals,” the intro track on the album he surprised fans with: GNX. He’ll be supporting the album on the Grand National Tour alongside SZA, who guests on “luther” and “gloria.” The two recently performed at TDE’s annual Christmas concert and toy drive.

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