New Drake lawsuit claims his label pushed ‘Not Like Us’ diss to defame him : NPR

The feud between Drake and Kendrick Lamar continues to set new precedents on the earth of rap beef. Drake has filed a brand new lawsuit in opposition to his father or mother label, Common Music Group, accusing the conglomerate of selling a music that put his life and livelihood in instant hazard.

A brand new 91-page lawsuit filed in New York’s Southern District Courtroom immediately particulars three tried dwelling invasions the Canadian rapper skilled at his Toronto residence final spring — one involving the taking pictures of his safety guard — and months of on-line hate. Drake is alleging within the petition that these break-ins, and the broader vitriol he skilled, are a direct results of UMG’s launch of Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us,” the focused Drake diss-turned-hit single.

The lawsuit states that UMG knowingly dedicated defamation of character by releasing and selling “Not Like Us” as a result of the file’s lyrics “advance the false and malicious narrative that Drake is a pedophile,” use an aerial view of his dwelling as the quilt artwork to the music and encourage the general public to “resort to vigilante justice in response.”

“The recording cloaks cleverly harmful lyrics behind a catchy beat and welcoming hook. Capitalizing on these attributes, UMG used each software at its disposal to make sure that the world would hear that Drake “like ’em younger,'” the lawsuit reads. The submitting goes on to quote a variety of TikTok and YouTube postings that defame the rapper because of the music; shares a photograph of a flyer that was posted round his neighborhood calling him a predator; and claims the musician needed to pull his little one out of faculty for concern of his security.

Graham’s attorneys allege that UMG closely promoted the monitor with a view to weaken Drake’s repute and devalue his model as an artist with the intention of backing him right into a nook and re-signing a deal that was favorable to the label.

This newest swimsuit follows information that the Canadian rap star withdrew a earlier submitting in opposition to UMG and streaming large Spotify, which accused the businesses of launching a marketing campaign that paid influencers, radio stations and others to advertise the music final summer season. Each lawsuits lean into UMG’s energy within the state of affairs and downplay Lamar’s half within the battle because the artist who launched the music laced with accusations of pedophilia and little one grooming.

“UMG could spin this grievance as a rap beef gone authorized, however this lawsuit is just not a couple of disagreement between artists. This lawsuit includes no claims in opposition to Kendrick Lamar or some other artist; as an alternative, it’s about UMG — the writer and unique rights holder of Lamar’s music, in addition to Drake’s — and its malicious resolution to publish and promote” the monitor, the lawsuit reads.

Within the months because it was launched, “Not Like Us” has grown right into a cultural phenomenon far bigger than the preliminary beef. Except for these lawsuits regarding the monitor, “Not Like Us” has grow to be a West Coast anthem, has been streamed multiple billion instances worldwide (and counting) and is nominated for 5 awards heading into the 2025 Grammys subsequent month, together with music and file of the 12 months. Off the momentum of “Not Like Us,” Kendrick Lamar has launched a cinematic music video, hosted a Juneteenth live performance in Los Angeles and dropped his sixth studio album, GNX, a physique of labor that doubles down on the message of separating himself from these within the tradition he sees as pretend, nefarious and fraudulent. By comparability, the tracks that Drake dropped within the wake of the pair’s battle (“No Face” and “Housekeeping Is aware of” feat. Latto) have racked up streams however struggled to make the identical affect.

Drake is suing UMG for an undisclosed quantity in damages.

UMG denied the lawsuit’s claims in a press release: “Not solely are these claims unfaithful, however the notion that we might search to hurt the repute of any artist—not to mention Drake—is illogical,” it begins. “We have now invested massively in his music and our workers world wide have labored tirelessly for a few years to assist him obtain historic business and private monetary success.”

The assertion says that the artist has “deliberately and efficiently used UMG to distribute his music and poetry to interact in conventionally outrageous back-and-forth ‘rap battles’ to specific his emotions about different artists” all through his profession, and that he now “seeks to weaponize the authorized course of to silence an artist’s inventive expression and to hunt damages from UMG for distributing that artist’s music.”

“We have now not and don’t have interaction in defamation—in opposition to any particular person,” it continues. “On the identical time, we’ll vigorously defend this litigation to guard our folks and our repute, in addition to any artist who would possibly straight or not directly grow to be a frivolous litigation goal for having carried out nothing greater than write a music.”