Kendrick Lamar explains meaning behind Drake diss 'Not Like Us'

Kendrick Lamar is breaking down the meaning of "Not Like Us" — without ever saying the name Drake.

The Pulitzer Prize-winning rapper, 37, spoke with SZA in an interview for Harper's Bazaar published Monday and was asked to explain what his Drake diss track "Not Like Us" means to him. Lamar did not mention the man who inspired the song anywhere in the interview, but he said "Not Like Us" reflects his own morals and values.

"Not like us? Not like us is the energy of who I am, the type of man I represent," Lamar said. "Now, if you identify with the man that I represent ... This man has morals, he has values, he believes in something, he stands on something. He's not pandering."

He continued, "He's a man who can recognize his mistakes and not be afraid to share the mistakes and can dig deep down into fear-based ideologies or experiences to be able to express them without feeling like he's less of a man. If I'm thinking of 'Not Like Us,' I'm thinking of me and whoever identifies with that."

"Not Like Us" was released in May amid a feud between Lamar and Drake, during which both rappers dropped diss tracks directed at each other. On "Not Like Us," Lamar references Drake by name, rapping, "Say Drake, I hear you like 'em young." He also raps, referencing Drake's album "Certified Lover Boy": "Certified Lover Boy? Certified pedophiles."

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The cover art of "Not Like Us" showed a photo of Drake's house covered in red markers that are used to identify registered sex offenders.

The feud between Drake and Lamar escalated in March after Lamar appeared on the Future and Metro Boomin song "Like That" and denied that he, Drake and J. Cole are the "big three" in rap, as J. Cole had suggested in an earlier song. "It's just big me," Lamar declared.

Kendrick Lamar says he's not 'an angry person' but believes in 'love and war'

Elsewhere in the Harper's Bazaar interview, SZA asked Lamar whether his music comes from an angry place, and he denied that it does.

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"I don't believe I'm an angry person," he said. "But I do believe in love and war, and I believe they both need to exist. And my awareness of that allows me to react to things but not identify with them as who I am. Just allowing them to exist and allowing them to flow through me. That's what I believe."

Lamar also opened up about his spirituality in the interview, sharing, "I literally talk to God. Like, it's to a point where I'll be starting to think I'm going crazy. But then He has to remind me, 'No, this is really me.'"

Lamar is set to headline the 2025 Super Bowl halftime show in February, the NFL announced last month. "Rap music is still the most impactful genre to date," Lamar said in a statement at the time. "And I'll be there to remind the world why. They got the right one."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kendrick Lamar sidesteps Drake feud, explains 'Not Like Us' diss