Mustard on Drake, Kendrick Lamar, and the Game-Changing ‘Not Like Us’

Yes, Mustard saw the viral video of the Amazon delivery driver dancing in the street to Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us.” And yes, he saw the kid in the blue dress shirt wilding out to the song in a clip from a recent Kamala Harris campaign rally.

But the moment that truly resonated for the hip-hop producer, who played a pivotal role in Lamar’s “Not Like Us” — a track that marked a serious victory in Lamar’s historic rap battle with Drake — was seeing his 9-year-old daughter perform a routine to the song in a group recital at her dance camp.

“She was right in the front, and I’m like, ‘You guys are dancing to a diss song about Drake — at school,’” he recalls with a laugh. “That was the best s— ever.”

A festive, if savage, takedown set to a deviously catchy horn riff, “Not Like Us” has been virtually impossible to avoid since its release late on a Saturday afternoon in May. It quickly shot to the top of Billboard’s Hot 100. Since then, it’s amassed over 1 billion streams on Spotify and YouTube, sparked think pieces about race in publications like The Atlantic and The New Yorker, and even inspired a brass band to turn the song into a critique of former President Donald Trump.

In an era of increasing cultural fragmentation, where grabbing everyone’s attention is increasingly difficult, “Not Like Us” achieved near-ubiquity this summer. It’s widely presumed to be a front-runner for record and song of the year nominations as Grammy season nears.

This runaway success is just another feather in the cap for Mustard, 34, a South Los Angeles native who has been a kingpin of West Coast rap for over a decade. Known for his sleek, bass-forward beats, Mustard has produced hits like Tyga’s “Rack City,” 2 Chainz’s “I’m Different,” YG’s “Big Bank,” and Chris Brown and Kid Ink’s “Show Me.” He’s also produced lush R&B tracks, including Tinashe’s “2 On,” Rihanna’s “Needed Me,” and Ella Mai’s “Boo’d Up,” which earned a song of the year nod at the Grammys in 2019 and won best R&B song.

“Mustard’s ear — his understanding of what sounds work together and who sounds good on something — it’s unmatched,” says Ella Mai, who is signed to Mustard’s record label, 10 Summers. “He’s never steered me wrong.”

Last month, Mustard (real name: Dijon McFarlane) released his fourth solo album, “Faith of a Mustard Seed,” featuring artists like Kirk Franklin, Lil Yachty, Quavo, Vince Staples, Charlie Wilson, Future, Ty Dolla Sign, and Young Thug. Rich with thoughts of family and childhood memories, it’s both his most personal effort yet and a subtle expansion of his signature sound.

“As the producer, you never get to talk, so I just wanted to give some insight into my life,” he says of the album’s 10-minute closer, “Pray for Me,” in which he raps about his experiences in the church, losing two grandparents to COVID-19, and his dad being deported to Jamaica when he was just 6 or 7.

Though Mustard’s early hits weren’t built around samples, many of the songs on “Mustard Seed” utilize bits of older records. This shift is due to “listening to a lot of Dr. Dre” and a desire to elevate his music. “I wanted it to sound more grown,” he says.

In “A Song for Mom,” he loops one of his mother’s favorite tracks — Luther Vandross and Cheryl Lynn’s rendition of Marvin Gaye’s “If This World Were Mine.” Another track, “Parking Lot,” which features Travis Scott, borrows from a mid-’70s gospel tune by the group Sweet Spirit. “It gives you a nice summertime feeling,” Mustard says, noting its more than 60 million streams on Spotify. “For that one I didn’t want to do anything super-aggressive that had to compete with ‘Not Like Us.’”

But nothing could really compete with “Not Like Us,” so powerful that Lamar performed it five times consecutively at his all-star Juneteenth concert at Inglewood’s Kia Forum. A crowd-pleasing flex given that the song accuses Drake of being a pedophile and cultural colonizer.

“I was right by the stage looking up at him as he was performing that night, and it was like everybody was getting healed,” says Terrace Martin, a musician and producer who has worked with Lamar and Snoop Dogg. “The biggest gangsters in the room were crying and hugging, and not because they were feeling good about burying Drake. It was just about everybody being in the same room having a good time together.”

Mustard had no sense that his beat for “Not Like Us” would become a hit. Constructed around a sped-up snippet of “I Believe to My Soul” by jazz and R&B saxophonist Monk Higgins, it was one of many tracks he’d sent Lamar hoping to collaborate. He only found out how Lamar used the instrumental when “Not Like Us” dropped amidst the beef with Drake.

“Then it was like the world stopped,” he says. “I was on the freeway going to a baby shower, and when I got there, there was a party next door and they were already playing it.”

Asked if he has a favorite line of Lamar’s in the song, Mustard grins. “‘Beat your ass and hide the Bible if God watchin’,’” he says. “You know how crazy that is to say to somebody?”

In 2016, Mustard appeared on the popular “Breakfast Club” radio show, insisting he didn’t want to be part of any beef and claiming his old friend YG was the only rapper for whom he’d produce a diss track.

“I’ve seen the clip — kind of funny,” he says today. “I really don’t want to be a part of no bulls—. But this is Kendrick Lamar. It’s different. This is history.”

Mustard praises Lamar, describing him as a genius who does the unthinkable every time. He admires Lamar’s ability to vanish from public view, likening his mystique to that of Prince. Even after the success of “Not Like Us,” Lamar has not posted anything. Mustard says, “His whole mystique gives me the same vibes as Prince.”

Indeed, Mustard stirred up a controversy with Drake’s fans on social media after some mocked the first-week sales of “Faith of a Mustard Seed.” Mustard responded by calling Drake “the Malcolm X of white people” and labeling his fanbase the “Nation of drizzlam.”

“These guys don’t go to sleep — all they do is tweet, tweet, tweet, tweet,” he says, laughing. “Drake should use that phrase. I won’t charge him for it.”

Would Mustard ever produce a song for Drake? “I don’t think I want to make a song with that dude,” he says. “He’s a strange guy.”

Years before becoming a staple in the music industry, Mustard grew up in South L.A., learning to DJ from his uncle, known as DJ Tee. By 12 or 13, he was earning money playing parties in the neighborhood. By the time he graduated from Dorsey High in Baldwin Hills, he had figured out how to make his own beats and began producing records for YG and others. His first top 10 hit came at age 21 with “Rack City.”

For “Faith of a Mustard Seed,” he sought advice from Pharrell Williams and Jay-Z, who assured him he sounded good on “Pray for Me.”

“That’s all I needed to hear,” Mustard says. “That was enough for me to be like, OK, cool, I can do this.”

Despite addressing some rough patches, the album reflects the optimistic place he’s in now. He’s been on a “weight-loss journey,” prompted by pandemic-related fears. Filing for divorce from his ex-wife, Chanel Thierry, was another positive move for him.

“When you’re unhappy with somebody, your kids see that,” he says. “Now I’m at home swimming and barbecuing, and my kids aren’t seeing me and their mom arguing all the time.”

He even shows generosity towards the Recording Academy, which has faced criticism for its handling of hip-hop and R&B. “I don’t think it’s as deep as everybody is making it,” Mustard says, adding that the real issue is that knowledgeable Grammy voters don’t bother to cast their ballots.

Has he imagined winning a Grammy for “Not Like Us”? “Maaannn,” he says, leaning his head back. “And think about if we win. That’s a big night. Big win for the Coast.”

Source: Los Angeles Times