Kendrick Lamar fans aren’t happy that Post Malone’s “I Had Some Help” has been crowned the song of the summer over his hit Drake diss “Not Like Us.”
Billboard awarded the title to Posty’s country collaboration with Morgan Wallen on Wednesday (September 4) as they unveiled their Songs of the Summer chart for 2024.
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As the publication explains, “the 20-position Songs of the Summer running tally tracks the most popular titles based on cumulative performance on the weekly streaming-, airplay- and sales-based Billboard Hot 100 chart from Memorial Day through Labor Day (this year encompassing charts dated June 8 through Sept. 7).”
“I Had Some Help” took home the crown after leading the chart for all 14 weeks throughout this time period.
"Not Like Us" by Kendrick Lamar is the only rap song in the top 10 of the Billboard Top Songs of the Summer list this year
The highest rank for hip-hop song since "First Class" by Jack Harlow (#3) pic.twitter.com/h3M1h9N0pi
— The Ken Society (@kendricksociety) September 3, 2024
“Not Like Us” came in at number three, behind Shaboozey’s “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” — which currently sits at number one on the Hot 100 — in second place.
Tommy Richman is the only other rapper in the top 10, with his breakout hit “Million Dollar Baby” at number five. Rounding out the list were Sabrina Carpenter (“Espresso,” “Please Please Please”), Hozier (“Too Sweet”), Teddy Swims (“Lose Control”), Billie Eilish (“Birds of a Feather”) and Benson Boone (“Beautiful Things”).
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Despite being backed up by metrics, the results didn’t sit well with Kendrick Lamar fans who felt that “Not Like Us” was a shoe-in for Song of the Summer.
“‘Not Like Us’ and that 5 million it sold must have came out in a different summer that I’m not aware of,” one user wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
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Another pointed out how inescapable K. Dot’s track was, commenting: “This exactly why n-ggas say stream farming exists cause WHO was listening to this the whole summer?? I couldn’t step foot outside without hearing ‘Not Like Us.'”
Even critics of “Not Like Us” took issue with the outcome, with one saying: “As a n-gga that hated ‘Not Like Us’ this some bullshit. They always try to drown black people out.”
“Not Like Us” and that 5 million it sold must have came out in a different summer that I’m not aware of https://t.co/eDWchI1Kkb
— Eddie Francis (@yourboyeddie) September 3, 2024
As a nigga that hated “Not Like Us” this some bullshit. They always try to drown black people out. https://t.co/uGG2cn7f6S
— Mr. OG, Triple (@EliBomber) September 5, 2024
This exactly why niggas say stream farming exists cause WHO was listening to this the whole summer?? I couldn’t step foot outside without hearing Not Like Us https://t.co/gzZWquHMUI
— Kíra (@Chaotic_Incubus) September 4, 2024
Despite missing out on Billboard‘s Song of the Summer crown, “Not Like Us” has been both a commercial smash and culture-dominating moment since its release in May at the height of Kendrick Lamar’s beef with Drake.
The Mustard-produced anthem debuted at number one on the Hot 100, earning Kendrick his second chart-topping single of the year (after Future and Metro Boomin‘s “Like That, which lit the fuse of the feud) and fourth overall.
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It returned to the top of the chart two months later following the release of its accompanying music video, and adding insult to injury for his bitter rival, has broken several of Drake’s streaming records along the way.
Last month, “Not Like Us” officially become the best-selling song of 2024 in the U.S. after racking up at least four million equivalent sales units.
Away from the charts, the song’s cultural significance was underscored at Kendrick’s Pop Out concert in Inglewood in June, where he performed “Not Like Us” five times in a row — with some help from Dr. Dre — in what felt like an unofficial victory lap in his battle with Drake.
The song also soundtracked a historic moment of unity in Los Angeles as K. Dot shared the stage with members of Crips and Bloods to help bridge the divide between the warring gangs.
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“This shit making me emotional. We been fucked up since Nipsey [Hussle] died. We been fucked up since Kobe [Bryant] died. This is unity at its finest,” the Compton rapper told the crowd.
“We done lost a lot of homies to this music shit, to this street shit. For all of us to be together on stage, that shit is special. Everybody on this stage got fallen soldiers.”
