Kendrick Lamar brought his now Grammy-winning trolling of Drake to the biggest stage imaginable at the 2025 Super Bowl halftime show at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.
After months of speculation about his setlist, Lamar, 37, included “Not Like Us” in his performance, meaning that more than 73,000 fans got to scream along as he rapped, “And it’s probably A minor.”
Lamar teased a snippet of the song early in the show, jokingly asking whether he should perform “their favorite song.” After the track’s intro began, however, he pivoted to a different song, leaving viewers to wonder whether “Not Like Us” had been omitted from the setlist. (Prior to the halftime show, rumors circulated that Lamar wouldn’t be allowed to perform the song.)
Later in the set, however, Lamar delivered, launching into “Not Like Us” as Serena Williams danced on stage. While he didn’t say the word “pedophile” in the famous line, “Certified lover boy, certified pedophile,” he did include, “Tryna strike a chord and it’s probably A minor.”
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Lamar’s set also featured tracks from his latest album, GNX, including “Squabble Up” and “Luther.” SZA joined him for the latter song as well as “All the Stars” from the Black Panther soundtrack.
Since Lamar was announced as the halftime show performer in September 2024, fans have wondered whether he would include “Not Like Us” in his set. Released in May of last year, the song is full of blistering digs at Drake, 38. The two rappers have traded barbs off and on for more than a decade, but their feud hit a fever pitch last spring when they exchanged a series of diss tracks.
While both musicians released several songs about the other, many observers declared Lamar as the winner of the feud, given both the lyrical content and popularity of “Not Like Us.” The No. 1 hit memorably accused Drake of pedophilia in lines like “Say, Drake, I hear you like ’em young” and “Tryna strike a chord and it’s probably A minor.”
Drake denied the pedophilia accusations in “The Heart Part 6,” but the track did little to stop the virality of “Not Like Us,” which has soundtracked everything from sporting events to the Democratic National Convention.
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After Lamar was announced as the halftime show headliner, reports circulated that Drake had sent his rival a cease-and-desist to stop him from performing “Not Like Us” at the Super Bowl, but a rep for the Canadian-born artist later denied it. “The rumors are completely false,” a rep for Drake told Us Weekly in October 2024.
One month later, Drake filed a legal complaint alleging that Lamar’s record label, Universal Music Group (which is also his own record label), conspired with Spotify to artificially inflate the popularity of “Not Like Us.” UMG vehemently denied the allegations, as did Spotify.
Drake later withdrew the complaint but filed a federal lawsuit against UMG in January, accusing the label of defamation and harassment, claiming that the company “chose corporate greed over the safety and well-being of its artists.”
UMG again denied his allegations, telling Us in a statement: “Not only are these claims untrue, but the notion that we would seek to harm the reputation of any artist — let alone Drake — is illogical. We have invested massively in his music and our employees around the world have worked tirelessly for many years to help him achieve historic commercial and personal financial success. Throughout his career, Drake has intentionally and successfully used UMG to distribute his music and poetry to engage in conventionally outrageous back-and-forth ‘rap battles’ to express his feelings about other artists. He now seeks to weaponize the legal process to silence an artist’s creative expression and to seek damages from UMG for distributing that artist’s music.”
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The statement continued: “We have not and do not engage in defamation — against any individual. At the same time, we will vigorously defend this litigation to protect our people and our reputation, as well as any artist who might directly or indirectly become a frivolous litigation target for having done nothing more than write a song.”
Earlier this month at the Grammys, “Not Like Us” swept all five categories in which it was nominated: Song of the Year, Record of the Year, Best Rap Performance, Best Rap Song and Best Music Video.
