Kendrick Lamar whipped Drake in just about every metric that matters in their legendary battle of rhymes from earlier this year. And that includes one that Drake has gotten used to dominating over most other acts, rapper or otherwise.
Everyone and their mother knows that “Not Like Us” has continued to be one of the most popular tracks of the year and has steadily been near the top of the Billboard Hot 100. But did you know that the track has also been atop Billboard’s Hot Rap Songs chart for 19 consecutive weeks?
That surpasses the chart-topping run of Drake’s “Hotline Bling” back in 2016. That track was atop the chart for 18 weeks, which was the record before Lil Nas X and Kendrick Lamar smashed it.
“Not Like Us” is now tied with Lil Nas X’s “Industry Baby” as the number-two track that’s spent the most weeks atop the chart. The only track above it is “Old Town Road,” also by Lil Nas X, which was atop the Hot Rap Songs chart for 20 weeks.
If “Not Like Us” can stay in vogue for the next two weeks — which isn’t a hard sell considering it’s ubiquity during HBCU band season — the track will overtake “Old Town Road.”
It’s also worth noting that Drake — who has been known for having hit songs that dominate the summer — went the entirety of this warm season without a new earworm of a hit. His biggest tracks this year, “Passionfruit” and “Hotline Bling,” are several years old.
With fans obsessed with every move that Lamar makes, it’s not a stretch to say that his popularity will continue to build in the coming months, especially since he was recently announced as the headliner for next year’s Super Bowl Halftime Show in New Orleans.
All that’s left for him to do is drop a new album, which is set to be his most anticipated yet.