section_path: Composition
section_name: Composition
paragraph_text: Composition
  
  "Not Like Us" is a " club -friendly" West Coast hip-hop track with strong hyphy stylings. Several elements of its production, including the "stirring" violins, piano and brass instruments, were taken from samples of Monk Higgins 's 1968 rendition of "I Believe to My Soul", a cover of Ray Charles 's 1961 composition. Despite speculation, the song does not include a sample of Nas 's diss record " Ether " (2001). On "Not Like Us", Lamar employs a "comically exaggerated" cadence that elicited comparisons to Drakeo the Ruler 's signature flow.
  
  Mustard, the song's primary producer, wanted to work with Lamar for years and would send him about five beats a day for three months. He was inspired to compose the beat after imagining what Dr. Dre would create if he was in a recording studio with Lil Jon. With contributions from Sounwave and Sean Momberger, Mustard produced "Not Like Us" in about 30 minutes by speeding up the sample's tempo to create a "relentless" and "urgent" atmosphere. Its additional bassline, snare drums, and finger snaps heightened its "aggressive" tone. On April 6, 2024, Mustard sent the finished production to Lamar while attending his manager's birthday dinner. He received a complimentary text message from Lamar later that evening, but was unaware Lamar used it until the song came out.
  
  "Not Like Us" is a " club -friendly" West Coast hip-hop track with strong hyphy stylings. Several elements of its production, including the "stirring" violins, piano and brass instruments, were taken from samples of Monk Higgins 's 1968 rendition of "I Believe to My Soul", a cover of Ray Charles 's 1961 composition. Despite speculation, the song does not include a sample of Nas 's diss record " Ether " (2001). On "Not Like Us", Lamar employs a "comically exaggerated" cadence that elicited comparisons to Drakeo the Ruler 's signature flow.
  
  Mustard, the song's primary producer, wanted to work with Lamar for years and would send him about five beats a day for three months. He was inspired to compose the beat after imagining what Dr. Dre would create if he was in a recording studio with Lil Jon. With contributions from Sounwave and Sean Momberger, Mustard produced "Not Like Us" in about 30 minutes by speeding up the sample's tempo to create a "relentless" and "urgent" atmosphere. Its additional bassline, snare drums, and finger snaps heightened its "aggressive" tone. On April 6, 2024, Mustard sent the finished production to Lamar while attending his manager's birthday dinner. He received a complimentary text message from Lamar later that evening, but was unaware Lamar used it until the song came out.