In the latest twist in the bruising beef between Drake and Kendrick Lamar, the Canadian rapper has initiated legal action against Universal Music Group over allegations that the company conspired using Spotify to artificially inflate the popularity of Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us.”
The action is doubly surprising because UMG distributes both artists’ recordings.
In a filing Monday in Manhattan court first reported by Billboard, Drake’s Frozen Moments LLC accused UMG of launching an illegal “scheme” involving bots, payola and other methods to boost the numbers for Lamar’s viciously personal song, which accuses Drake of pedophilia and amplified the already fiery dispute between the two artists.
The petition, obtained by Variety, claims that UMG “engaged in conduct designed to artificially inflate the popularity of ‘Not Like Us’… including by licensing the song at drastically reduced rates to Spotify and using ‘bots’ to generate the false impression that the song was more popular than it was in reality.”
In a response several hours after the news broke, a UMG rep told Variety: “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.“
While other streaming services are not named in the petition, it does claim that “UMG appears to have used similar tactics with other streaming services. On information and belief, UMG paid, or approved payments to, Apple Inc. to have its voice-activated digital assistant ‘Siri’ purposely misdirect users to ‘Not Like Us.’”
“UMG did not rely on chance, or even ordinary business practices,” the petition continues. “It instead launched a campaign to manipulate and saturate the streaming services and airwaves.”
Reps for Drake, Lamar, Spotify and UMG either declined or did not immediately respond to Variety’s requests for comment.
Drake’s attorneys claim that UMG violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, which is often used in criminal cases against organized crime (and was deployed to convict R. Kelly of sexual misconduct and other crimes in 2021). They also allege deceptive business practices and false advertising under New York state law.
As Billboard notes, Monday’s filing is not yet a full lawsuit, but a so-called “pre-action” petition — a procedure under New York law that aims to secure information before filing a lawsuit.
However, the move is extraordinary in a number of ways. Earlier this year, Lamar piled on a series of increasingly personal diss tracks against Drake, not only accusing him of having relationships with underaged women — which Drake has denied — as well as children not revealed to the public, and has gone so far as to address Drake’s son Adonis, his mother and others in his songs.
Drake released songs in response, but soon removed them from his socials and then went silent. The beef calmed down after a man was shot outside of Drake’s Toronto residence in May, but fired up again with the surprise release of Lamar’s new “GNX” album on Friday.
However, he did appear to address the situation late Sunday in a Kick stream with host xQc in which he introduced himself by saying, “I’m Drake, this is xQc, real streaming legend. Me, I do music, in case you don’t know.
“I’m here,” he continued. “Full intact, mind, body, and soul, in case you were wondering. You need facts to take me out, fairytales won’t do it,” he added, possibly alluding to the forthcoming legal action.
He made a similar statement later in the show, adding, “Nothing makes me uncomfortable. I’ve worked too hard to be uncomfortable. Nothing fazes me, like I said, it takes only facts to fold me, fairytales don’t work.”
Variety will have more on the situation as it develops.
