In November 2024, Drake filed two actions with the first a petition in New York accusing the Universal Music Group of conspiring with the music streamer Spotify as well as a second one against UMG in Texas. While The Boy has withdrawn his petition in New York to make way for a lawsuit, his petition in Texas still remains.
In light of this, UMG has filed a motion to dismiss the petition in Texas. The music company is arguing in a 144-page filing to clear the petition under the guise of protected free speech. Variety has reviewed the filing which calls into action the Texas Citizens Participation Action which “protects from retaliatory lawsuits that seek to intimidate or silence them on matters of public concern.” UMG argues that under the Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 202, Drake has filed the petition “designed to intimidate and punish people for exercising their First Amendment rights.”
UMG’s motion cites the TCPA, shifting the burden to Drake to prvoide clear evidence of the claims he is petitioning. One of them include the accusation that UMG has “funneled” payments to iHeartMedia as a part of a “pay-to-pay scheme.” UMG is claiming that Drake is incapable of showing a burden of proof because he has no admissible evidence and therefore, wants a motion to dismiss the petition. The motion states that Drake “provides nothing outside of his verified petition” and “no evidentiary support for his asserted need for pre-suit deposition of UMG.” UMG continues to discredit Drake’s sources from his initial petition stating that “these claims from unnamed, unidentified out-of-court declarants are hearsay and are not admissible as evidence.” UMG rounds out the motion to request a dismissal and suspend all discovery relating to the matter. It also requests that Drake pay its attorney’s fees and cost associated with its defense.
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