Photo: Getty Images
Kendrick Lamar performed his diss tracks aimed at Drake for the first time live, and invited his friends to pop out with him.
On Wednesday night, June 19, the Compton native celebrated Juneteenth on stage at "The Pop Out - Ken & Friends" at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif. After fans erupted with "O-V-HOE" chants throughout the arena, K. Dot didn't hold back as he kicked off the show with "euphoria." During that performance, Kendrick fired a new shot at Drake when he switched up one of his bars about 2Pac's ring.
“Give me Tupac’s ring back and I might give you a little respect," Kendrick rapped
After he performed his verse from Future & Metro Boomin's "Like That," Kendrick Lamar brought out Dr. Dre to perform his timeless hits "Still D.R.E." and "California Love" in one of the most shocking moments of the show. Before he exited the stage, Dre gave K. Dot his props and helped introduce the closing song "Not Like Us" by whispering the opening line, "I see dead people."
“Y’all ain’t gonna let anyone disrespect the West Coast huh?" Kendrick said in between songs. "Oh y'all ain't gonna let nobody mock or imitate our legends huh?"
Kendrick proceeded to perform "Not Like Us" five times and played the song one more time before the show ended. On the fourth performance, the Pulitzer Prize winner brought up all the surprise guests who performed during the show along with other special attendees like Russell Westbrook and Demar Derozan. LeBron James, James Harden and Rick Ross were also spotted in the crowd enjoying the festivities.
Kung Fu Kenny had his close friends come through to bask in the epic moment in his career with him. Jay Rock was the first to pop out on stage with Kendrick during "Money Trees." His longtime friend and former labelmate stayed to perform "Win" and "King's Dead." The crowd went wild after his other Black Hippy brethren Ab-Soul and ScHoolboy Q joined him, which marked the first time the entire crew had performed together in years.
The show, which was livestreamed on Amazon’s Prime Video, continued with other classics from Kendrick's catalog. He performed songs like "HUMBLE.", "DNA" and "ELEMENT" off his DAMN. album as well as "Alright" from To Pimp A Butterfly, and his breakthrough single "Swimming Pools" from good kid, m.A.A.d city. All the songs he chose appeared to fit in with the defensive theme of his show, and they all had lines that could easily apply to Drake.
At the very end, Kendrick Lamar and his guests partied on stage as he performed "Not Like Us" for the last time. Despite the theme of the night, Kendrick reminded the people about how close the West Coast is. He also emphasized his moment on stage with everyone signified the true purpose of the event.
Check out more scenes from Kendrick Lamar's rare concert below.