Kendrick Lamar performs Drake diss 'Not Like Us' 5 times at Juneteenth 'Pop Out' concert
Kendrick Lamar is doing it for the West Coast.
The Compton, California, rapper returned to the stage for "The Pop Out" concert at the Kia Forum on Wednesday for Juneteenth. The concert, streamed live on Amazon Prime Video, comes a month after his fiery rap beef with Drake.
Though he opened his set with the diss track "Euphoria," the night was more about Los Angeles pride, as fellow California natives like Tyler, The Creator, Steve Lacy, former labelmates from his supergroup Black Hippy (Schoolboy Q, Jay Rock and Ab-Soul), Ty Dolla $ign, DJ Mustard, YG, Roddy Ricch and Dom Kennedy performed at the Inglewood, California, venue.
But the set wasn't without a final dagger (or five). Following an appearance from Dr. Dre to perform "Still D.R.E." and "California Love," the hip-hop producer whispered "I see dead people," opening Lamar's "Not Like Us."
The Pulitzer Prize winner went on to perform the track five times, telling the crowd between the encore performances: "Y'all ain't gonna let anyone disrespect the West Coast, huh?" During the final encore, the rapper brought the night's performers on stage with individuals from various L.A. neighborhoods and affiliations as a show of "unity."
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
"Let them see this," Lamar said after corralling the group for a photo.
Russell Westbrook, DeMar DeRozan, LeBron James seen at Kendrick Lamar concert
Former and current NBA players were seen in attendance at Kendrick Lamar's "Pop Out" concert, including Russell Westbrook and DeMar DeRozan, who joined the rapper on stage, and LeBron James.
Other people in attendance included Rick Ross, Chloe Bailey, The Weeknd, radio host Big Boy and Lamar's fiancée, Whitney Alford.
All 9 Drake and Kendrick Lamar2024 diss songs, including 'Not Like Us' and 'Part 6'
Kendrick Lamar changes 'Euphoria' lyric, tells Drake to give him 'Tupac's ring back'
Wednesday was the first time Lamar has gotten a chance to perform his Drake diss tracks live.
In "Euphoria," Lamar managed to change a lyric during the live performance, rapping: "Give me Tupac's ring back, and I might give you a little respect."
The lyric refers to Drake buying a ring owned by the late rapper Tupac Shakur for $1 million at an auction, as he rapped in Travis Scott's 2023 track "Meltdown." Drake showed the ring in the video for his Lamar diss track "Family Matters."
Kendrick Lamar and Drakerap beef: What makes this music feud so significant?
In April, Drake featured artificial intelligence impersonations of Snoop Dogg and Tupac in his "Taylor Made Freestyle" diss, which got the Toronto-born rapper in hot water with Tupac's estate and caused the song to be pulled from streaming services.
"Kendrick, we need ya, the West Coast savior / Engraving your name in some hip-hop history," the Tupac audio deepfake rapped. "If you deal with this viciously / You seem a little nervous about all the publicity."
In addition to "Euphoria" and "Not Like Us," Kendrick also performed "6:16 in LA" and "Like That." The rapper skipped the nearly seven-minute diss track, "Meet the Grahams."
How to Watch Kendrick Lamar's 'The Pop Out' concert online
"The Pop Out: Ken & Friends" appears to no longer be available to rewatch on Amazon Prime Video or Twitch. Check back here for streaming updates.
Disclaimer: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author. Reposting this article is solely for the purpose of information dissemination and does not constitute any investment advice. If there is any infringement, please contact us immediately. We will make corrections or deletions as necessary. Thank you.