Kendrick Lamar’s streams for his culture-dominating 2024 song “Not Like Us” soared some 430% on Spotify in the hours after his halftime performance during the Super Bowl on Sunday night, and the nine other songs he performed as part of his 13-minute medley reached into the double digits for a 175% total gain, according to data provided by the streaming service on Monday morning.
The performance, which saw him teasing “Not Like Us,” his savage Drake diss track, twice before actually performing it, also featured enlisting SZA (pictured above performing with Lamar), Samuel L. Jackson, Serena Williams and Mustard for an ode to his hometown of Compton, California on the biggest stage in the world.
“The set, with its American flag color palette, largely consisted of tracks from his freshly released album ‘GNX’ as well as a few loosies from his deeper catalog,” wrote Variety’s Steven J. Horowitz. “With Jackson serving as a master of ceremonies (dressed as Uncle Sam, naturally), Lamar led a robust team of backup dancers who slipped in and out of formation as he toured his discography, giving renditions of “DNA,” “Peekaboo,” “Squabble Up” and “Humble.”
“The million-dollar question leading into the Super Bowl: Would he, or wouldn’t he, perform ‘Not Like Us,’ the song where he accuses his foe Drake of pedophilia, on the biggest stage in the world? Counterpoint: Why wouldn’t he? ‘Not Like Us’ was the most culturally important song of 2024, with continued dominance into this year after winning five Grammys including song and record of the year.”
Of course he did.
And as far as specific tracks, there were a few clear standouts from his setlist (9PM-12AM ET)*:
• “Not Like Us” +430%
• “HUMBLE.” +300%
• “All The Stars (with SZA)” +290%
• “man at the garden” +260%
• “DNA.” +260%
• “euphoria” +260%
• “squabble up” +230%
• “peekaboo (feat. azchike)” +230%
• “luther (with sza)” +170%
• “tv off (feat. lefty gunplay)” +170
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