The music video for Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us,” released on July 4, was a special moment, especially because rap rival Drake was at Michael Rubin’s annual all-white party with other rappers and celebrities on the same day. The owner of Fanatics has now confirmed that he did not allow DJs to play the song out of respect for his friend.
Rubin appeared on The Breakfast Club Wednesday (August 14) and was asked about his annual celebrations, particularly the rumor that he didn’t allow the hit diss record to be played. “It’s true,” he said. “Drake has been my friend for a long time. I’m not going to invite him and then – look, he’s obviously in a little fight right now (…) I just didn’t think it was appropriate, so I just sent a message. I said, ‘Hey, let’s not play the music of someone who’s in a fight with someone there.'”
Rubin claimed the decision was his and not something the Toronto superstar asked him to do. He even revealed that he hosted a barbecue the night before the all-white party the “It’s Up” artist attended and the song was played before he arrived. “They turned the music on in my house and put RapCaviar on. ‘Not Like Us’ came on and in the middle of ‘Not Like Us’ I was like ‘Get out! Get out!'”
DJ Envy asked Michael Rubin about the viral photos of Drake looking exhausted at the party, and Rubin also cleared up rumors about that. “He had a great time,” the former Philadelphia 76ers minority owner said. “Someone just said something to me about social media: ‘You have to be built for social media. You have to be tough. You have to take sh*t from people.’ (…) Look, Drake is an iconic artist that we all have tremendous respect for. What I said to Drake, and I truly believe this, is that this is a huge test for him. You can’t get to where he is without people rooting for you.”
Rubin admitted that he sleeps with one eye open and acknowledged that success comes with hate. “He’s going to come out with a lot of incredible music and people are going to say, ‘That’s why Drake is Drake,'” he claimed. The 6 God echoed Rubin’s words with his recent 100 GIGs Three-pack with Young Thug, 21 Savage and Latto.
On Spotify alone, the songs have amassed over 11 million streams in the past five days. On Apple Music, “It’s Up” featuring Thugger and Savage is at No. 6 on the Top 100 Global Chart, No. 4 on the Top 100 USA Chart, No. 4 on the Top 100 Canada Chart, and No. 1 on the NYC, Miami, Houston, and Washington, DC regional charts. The ultimate test will be where these songs land on the Billboard Hot 100, especially since Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” has held onto its spot in the top ten for the past few months.
