Even Drake’s label says he “lost a rap battle” with Kendrick Lamar. In a new legal filing asking the courts to toss out Drake’s defamation lawsuit against them, Universal Music Group (UMG) argued that the Canadian singer/rapper only took legal action against them because he was upset at Kendrick’s song “Not Like Us” dominating him in their beef.
“Plaintiff, one of the most successful recording artists of all time, lost a rap battle that he provoked and in which he willingly participated,” the filing reads, as reported by XXL.
“Instead of accepting the loss like the unbothered rap artist he often claims to be, he has sued his own record label in a misguided attempt to salve his wounds. Plaintiff’s Complaint is utterly without merit and should be dismissed with prejudice.”
Drake Definitely Did Not like Being Called a ‘Pedophile’
The main source of issue for Drake seems to be that, in “Not Like Us,” Kendrick labels him a “certified pedophile,” which UMG argued was a complaint that pre-dates the song, seemingly referring to the controversy that Drake previously had a texting relationship with actress Millie Bobbie Brown while she was underage.
At this point, the timeline of Drake’s legal battle over the tune is deeply complex, but to briefly run it down: Back in November, Drake began filing lawsuits over “Not Like Us,” partly claiming that UMG had inflated the song’s plays across radio and streaming.
Fast forward to January, he withdrew his lawsuit, seemingly having settled the matter privately. Then, he refiled against the record company, with his legal team arguing that the label used the resources at its disposal to “elevate a dangerous and inflammatory message that was designed to assassinate Drake’s character.”
Drake’s legal team hits back at UMG
In response to the new filing, Drake’s legal team hit back yet again, with a statement reading: “UMG wants to pretend that this is about a rap battle in order to distract its shareholders, artists and the public from a simple truth: a greedy company is finally being held responsible for profiting from dangerous misinformation that has already resulted in multiple acts of violence.”
The statement adds: “This motion is a desperate ploy by UMG to avoid accountability, but we have every confidence that this case will proceed and continue to uncover UMG’s long history of endangering and abusing its artists.”
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