Kendrick Lamar's “Not Like Us” video is a celebration of the rapper's beloved hometown of Compton, but several local business owners claimed the production of the visual hurt them financially.
Kendrick Lamar's “Not Like Us” Video Costs Local Businesses Lost Revenue
According to a Los Angeles Times report, published Saturday (September 14), Kendrick Lamar's “Not Like Us” music video cost several local businesses in Compton, California, thousands of dollars in lost revenue.
Corina Pleasant, the owner of Alma's Place, a food show restaurant, told the LATimes on the day of the music video shoot that customers weren't coming into her store because the parking lot was full of people looking for a photo to be in the video. He estimates he lost between $1,800 and $2,200 that day of filming the video. Other business owners in the area were also affected.
Adelfo Antonio Garcia, co-owner of Sunny Express Gourmet Fast Food, told the newspaper he also had about $2,000 in damage. And customers continue to mistakenly believe his restaurant is closed on Saturdays.
The business owners are now asking K-Dot, pgLang's production company, or the city to compensate them for their lost revenue.
“It was really frustrating to have the electricity and the gas,” Pleasant told the LATimes. “I'm just running everything and I'm not making any money. I was literally there for nothing, because the little money I made, I had to pay my staff with.”
Local businesses also criticized the city's lack of communication, claiming they were not notified in advance of Kendrick's video shoot taking place near their premises.
A spokesperson for the city of Compton told the LATimes in a statement that the city will identify “opportunities to more effectively communicate with our community” going forward.
“Compton businesses, especially small businesses, are the backbone of our city,” the statement said. “We want to continue to maintain an open line of communication and do what we can to support economic growth.”
XXL has contacted the Compton Chamber of Commerce for a statement.
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Tam's Burgers sees a significant increase in sales
Some businesses saw a boost in sales thanks to Kendrick's “Not Like Us” video. Tam's Burgers, the famous local restaurant where Kenny filmed parts of his visual, reportedly saw a spike in sales after the visual was released.
In an interview with TMZ, which you can see below, one of the managers at Tam's Burgers at the Compton location on Rosecrans Ave. saw an influx of customers in the days following the July 4 release of the “Not Like Us” video.
Manager Lauro Hernandez told the media that customers ordered the bacon cheeseburger, which K-Dot orders. Rhyme Compton has reportedly been visiting the institution since he was a teenager. Hernandez added that they did not ask for money to film at the restaurant, but Kendrick agreed to display the store's signage in the video for promotion.
Read more: People are sick of 'They're not like us' and they don't want to hear it
Watch Tam's Burger owner talk about Kendrick Lamar filming the “Not Like Us” video at his restaurant below.
