Kendrick Lamar highlighting his hometown burger joint in his “Not Like Us” video is paying big dividends … as the folks at Tam’s Burgers say they’re stacking bread and cheese, just like their signature dish!
TB manager Lauro Hernandez and his son Bryan Noe tell TMZ Hip Hop … customers have been flooding their Rosecrans Ave location in Compton all weekend, after K. Dot released the smash music vid on July 4.
They say many fans who came in, told them “Not Like Us” was the reason for their visit — and while they still have steady support from locals, Lauro and Bryan say they’re picking up lots of tourist business.
Business is up 30% to 40% since the video dropped.
In the video, Kendrick and ‘NLU’ producer Mustard pull up to Tam’s in a Lambo and post up inside with dancer Storm DeBarge during the song’s 2nd verse.
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Lauro says people have been largely ordering the bacon cheeseburger — that’s what Kendrick gets when he’s there.
He’s known Kendrick since he was a teenager, having been grounded in the community for the past 20 years, and he finds it amazing the superstar rapper comes back and never forgets his roots.
Kendrick’s shouted out Tam’s over the years in his songs, even on his most recent “Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers” album, and Lauro tells us he happily shut down for the day when Dot and Dave Free came to film scenes inside.
They didn’t ask for any money for using the restaurant in the video, but Kendrick wanted to make sure they got something for their time, and for closing down — so, they agreed the Tam’s logo would be featured in the final cut.
That look’s clearly paying off, based on the sales boost at Tam’s — which adds up when you see the music video already has more than 35 million views! That’s a ton of free advertising.
Kendrick’s homies also wanted to take care of him … Jason Martin and Jay Worthy went half on billboards in Compton featuring the city-unifying images from June’s Pop Out concert at the Forum.
The West Coast is having a modern-day renaissance!!!