Drake sues UMG for defamation over Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Not Like Us’

Drake has filed a lawsuit against Universal Music Group (UMG) over allegations the music giant defamed him by promoting Kendrick Lamar’s breakaway track “Not Like Us,” claiming the label boosted a “false and malicious narrative” that the star rapper was a pedophile. and put his life in danger.

Hours after his lawyers withdrew an earlier motion, Drake filed a full-fledged defamation suit against his longtime label on Wednesday – claiming UMG knew Lamar’s “inflammatory and shocking allegations” were false, but chose to put “corporate greed ahead of corporate safety and well-being.” its artists.

“UMG intentionally sought to make Drake a pariah, a target for harassment, or worse,” the star’s lawyers write in a complaint filed in Manahttan federal court. “UMG did not do this because it believes these false claims to be true, but rather because it would benefit from damaging Drake’s reputation.”

In one of the lawsuit’s most vivid accusations, Drake claims the release of “Not Like Us” put him at risk of physical violence, including a drive-by shooting at his Toronto-area home a few days ago only after the song was released. They compared the situation to “Pizzagate,” an infamous online conspiracy theory centered on false allegations of pedophilia that later inspired an actual shooting.

“UMG’s greed had real consequences,” its lawyers write. “With the palpable physical threat to Drake’s safety and the bombardment of online harassment, Drake fears for the safety of himself, his family and his friends.”

Notably, the case is not against Lamar himself – a point that Drake’s lawyers repeatedly emphasize in their filings: “UMG may present this complaint as a beef made legal, but this lawsuit is not a war of words between artists. »

A UMG spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Wednesday’s trial is another dramatic escalation in a high-profile dispute that saw Drake and Lamar trade scathing tracks last year, culminating in Lamar’s knockout “Not Like Us” — a track that savagely called Drake a ” certified pedophile” and became a ranking. -topping hit in its own right.

Drake shocked the music industry in November when he filed a motion suggesting he might take legal action over the matter – first accusing UMG and Spotify of an illegal ‘scheme’ involving bots, payola and other methods to boost Lamar’s song, then later claiming the song had been defamatory. But those cases didn’t constitute full-fledged prosecutions, and Drake withdrew one Tuesday night.

Now the reason is clear: In Wednesday’s lawsuit, he formally sued UMG for the same alleged scheme, claiming the label “used every weapon in its arsenal” to increase the popularity of Lamar’s track, even though he knew the words were “not only untrue, but untrue.” dangerous.”

“With his own record company having waged a campaign against him and refusing to approach this matter as a business matter, Drake had no choice but to seek legal relief against UMG,” his lawyers write.

The filing of the case represents a doubling down on Drake, who has been ridiculed in some corners of the hip-hop world for taking legal action over a rap case. It will also deepen his rift with UMG, where the star has spent his entire career — first signing a deal with Lil Wayne’s Young Money imprint, distributed by Republic Records, and then signing directly with Republic.

In their complaint, Drake’s lawyers claim the label chose to boost “Not Like Us” despite its “defamatory” lyrics because they saw it as a “gold mine” — in part because UMG owns the recordings master of Lamar, but also because he could use the song to damage Drake’s position in future contract negotiations.

“UMG’s contract with Drake was about to be fulfilled… UMG anticipated that extending Drake’s contract would be costly,” its lawyers write. “By devaluing Drake’s music and brand, UMG would gain leverage to force Drake to sign a new deal on terms more favorable to UMG.”

The filing reveals new behind-the-scenes details about preparations for the litigation. Drake’s lawyers say they sent several legal letters last summer and fall, warning UMG that the lyrics were false and defamatory. They say Drake also “privately confronted” his label about his role in promoting Lamar’s lyrics and warned him about the safety risks, but that the label “refused to do anything about it.” it’s to help him.”

Instead, the lawsuit suggests that UMG simply informed Drake of the reputational risks of filing a complaint during a rap beef.

“After weeks of delay, UMG refused to do anything to help Drake, even going so far as to refuse to agree to mediation with Drake,” his lawyers write. “UMG instead insisted that it took no responsibility for the harm suffered by Drake and stated that if Drake sued UMG, UMG would respond by filing suit against Kendrick Lamar, and implied that Drake would ridiculed by the public for the perception that he had sued another rapper.

In their complaint, Drake’s lawyers go out of their way to argue that he did not in fact sue another rapper. Although they repeatedly claim Lamar’s lyrics and music video were defamatory, they say the case legally concerns actions UMG took after Drake informed his label that Kendrick’s accusations were false and dangerous.

“This lawsuit does not involve any claim against Kendrick Lamar or any other artist,” his lawyers write. “Instead, it is about UMG…and its malicious decision to publish and promote, through covert means, false allegations about Drake that UMG knew were false, explosive, inflammatory and which would certainly result in both vitriol and substantial harm to Drake’s reputation.”

The complaint repeats many accusations from Drake’s previous case, such as the claim that UMG conspired with others to artificially boost “Not Like Us.” This scheme allegedly included using bots to create fake streams and making undisclosed payments, as well as charging Spotify a lower licensing rate in exchange for streaming the song to its users. Drake also claims that UMG took the “unprecedented” step of “whitelisting” the song on YouTube, meaning users can share it without triggering automatic copyright filters.

But the lawsuit also includes new allegations about UMG’s efforts to “put a thumb on the scale” in Lamar’s favor, including his upcoming performance at the Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show in February: “UMG conferred financial and leveraged existing business relationships to secure the headliner. place,” write his lawyers.

All of this effort, Drake’s lawyers say, had the desired effect: “billions of streams” and “pervasive” popularity for “Not Like Us,” which spent two weeks atop the Hot 100 in May and remains in 23rd place in the ranking. this week.

And with this massive popularity, Drake claims his reputation has taken a significant hit, leading to “relentless vitriol” and acts of violence against one of UMG’s longtime artists.

“Even though UMG enriched itself and its shareholders by exploiting Drake’s music for years and knew the salacious allegations against Drake were false, UMG chose corporate greed over the safety and well-being of its artists,” assert his lawyers.

This is a breaking news story and will continue to be updated with additional details as they become available.