Drake is making another legal move against Universal Music Group over lyrics in Kendrick Lamar’s smash hit “Not Like Us” that he says are false and how UMG could’ve taken action but allegedly chose to do nothing.
Recent court documents provide more insight into why Drake isn’t pleased with the company’s role in the rap battle between him and K.Dot. On Nov. 25, he added a new case to the docket against UMG for defamation of character, according to Billboard. The second motion argues that the record label had the opportunity to halt the release of a damaging track that “falsely” claimed he was a “sex offender” but chose not to act.
“UMG … could have refused to release or distribute the song or required the offending material to be edited and/or removed,” Drake’s lawyers argued, per Billboard. “But UMG chose to do the opposite. UMG designed, financed and then executed a plan to turn ‘Not Like Us’ into a viral mega-hit with the intent of using the spectacle of harm to Drake and his businesses to drive consumer hysteria and, of course, massive revenues. That plan succeeded, likely beyond UMG’s wildest expectations.”
Additionally, Drake accused UMG of paying iHeartRadio to support the diss track on its stations as part of a “pay-to-play scheme.” Drake has been signed to UMG throughout most of his career — first under Young Money and then Republic — which worsens an already complicated case.
In his latest petition, Drake alleges that Lamar used illicit methods to unfairly elevate one of its artists over another.
“Before it approved the release of the song, UMG knew that the song itself, as well as its accompanying album art and music video, attacked the character of another one of UMG’s most prominent artists, Drake, by falsely accusing him of being a sex offender, engaging in pedophilic acts, harboring sex offenders and committing other criminal sexual acts,” his lawyers drafted.
As Blavity reported, this comes after Drake claimed the company artificially boosted the popularity of “Not Like Us” in his first pre-filing.
In a response to Drake’s first legal action, UMG stated: “The suggestion that UMG would do anything to undermine any of its artists is offensive and untrue. We employ the highest ethical practices in our marketing and promotional campaigns. No amount of contrived and absurd legal arguments in this pre-action submission can mask the fact that fans choose the music they want to hear.”
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