Drake sued his own record label for knowingly spreading the “false and malicious narrative” that he is a pedophile.
The “Hotline Bling” rapper filed a defamation suit against Universal Music Group in federal court on Wednesday, claiming the company boosted his rap rival Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” diss track for bargaining power, per TMZ.
In the song, Lamar rapped that Drake “likes ’em young” and that people should “hide [their] lil’ sister from him.”
“Certified Lover Boy? Certified pedophiles,” he also sang.
However, in the filing, Drake insisted that his “lawsuit is not about the artist who created ‘Not Like Us.’ It is, instead, entirely about UMG, the music company that decided to publish, promote, exploit and monetize” the song despite being aware of the lyrics.
The “God’s Plan” rapper claimed UMG knew the “false and dangerous” accusations would paint him as a predator but did nothing to protect him — in fact, he claimed they did the opposite.
Despite the diss track’s “inflammatory and shocking allegations,” Drake claimed UMG — which distributes both Drake and Lamar’s respective labels, Republic Records and Interscope Records — saw it as a financial “gold mine.”
Drake alleged that the label had an ulterior motive and artificially boosted the track to devalue his brand, which would give them leverage for future contract negotiations.
The “One Dance” rapper notably signed a reported $400 million deal with UMG in 2022 — one of the biggest contracts in history.
Drake claimed to have evidence that UMG paid off third-party bots to increase streams by nearly 30 million. According to the suit, the label did everything in its power to make “Not Like Us” a “chart-topper,” even engaging in “pay-for-play” schemes with radio hosts.
The song shot to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and broke several streaming records after its May 2024 release.
The “Degrassi” star also claimed UMG played a big role in landing Lamar’s upcoming Super Bowl halftime show, which they saw as another way to promote the song during “one of the most significant (and viewed) cultural events of the year.”
Drake noted that his safety had been compromised as a result of the song, pointing to several attempted break-ins and shootings outside his home, one of which wounded a security guard.
Reps for UMG and Drake did not immediately respond to Page Six’s request for comment.
While Drake previously filed a complaint against the music distributor in New York state court, he dropped that case Tuesday to open the doors for his federal filing.
In his original petition, the Canadian-born hitmaker made similar accusations against UMG and Spotify, accusing the companies of launching “a campaign to manipulate and saturate the streaming services and airwaves … in order to make that song go viral.”
However, the music corporation denied his accusations.
At the time, a spokesperson told us any suggestion that UMG “would do anything to undermine any of its artists is offensive and untrue,” adding, “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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