Barack Obama’s Summer Playlist Omitted A Massive Hit, And Fans Wonder If The Former President Is On Team Drake

Barack Obama is listening to everything from Charli XCX to Shaboozey, but apparently wasn’t feeling Kendrick Lamar’s “ Not Like Us ,” leading to fans wondering whether the former President is on Team Drake. While “Not Like Us” has turned out to be one of the biggest songs of the summer so far, climbing to the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 multiple times , it doesn’t appear on Obama’s recently shared summer 2023 playlist — even though the playlist includes entries from hip-hop faves like GloRilla, Megan Thee Stallion, and Saweetie.

The song spawned a browser game , inspired part of Serena Williams’ ESPY Awards monologue , and finally connected Kendrick Lamar to Gen Z and Gen Alpha fans . The song was even a big hit during the Olympics, with Team USA basketball stars Steph Curry and LeBron James debating its merits during shootaround .

It isn’t like Obama dislikes the Compton rapper’s music; he’s hung out with the rapper on several occasions, and even admitted to having him on a much more private playlist . He even predicted that Kendrick would topple Drake in a theoretical rap battle, eight years before the two actually came to lyrical blows. Maybe his excluding “Not Like Us” was an oversight, or perhaps he simply wanted to keep things kosher for the playlist, which still feels like it has some obligation to be at least a little wholesome and less haterific.