The capper to the feud between Kendrick Lamar and Drake doesn’t involve the “GNX” rapper at all.
Drake filed a defamation lawsuit against Universal Music Group, the record company that distributes both the Canadian artist and Lamar, saying that the company “sought to make [him] a pariah” with the release and promotion of Lamar’s smash-hit diss track “Not Like Us.”
The lawsuit alleges UMG of running a campaign to make a hit out of a song “intended to convey the specific, unmistakable and false factual allegation that Drake is a criminal pedophile, and to suggest that the public should resort to vigilante justice in response.”
Lamar’s track calls Drake a pedophile in no uncertain terms and the single’s artwork is an aerial view of Drake’s home covered with pins in the style of sex offender registry maps. After the release of the song, several people were caught trespassing at Drake’s home by the rapper’s security team.
The lawsuit also alleges that UMG is engaging in an intentional tanking of Drake’s star power to give themselves leverage in an upcoming renegotiation of his contract with the mega-label.
“UMG did so not because it believes any of these false claims to be true, but instead because it would profit from damaging Drake’s reputation,” the suit states.
UMG shared a statement with several outlets calling Drake’s claims “illogical” and accusing the rapper of engaging in lawfare.
“We have invested massively in his music and our employees around the world have worked tirelessly for many years to help him achieve historic commercial and personal financial success,” they shared. “He now seeks to weaponize the legal process to silence an artist’s creative expression and to seek damages from UMG for distributing that artist’s music.”
The label promised to “vigorously defend this litigation.” Though the lawsuit was clear that they were in no way suing Lamar or insinuating wrongdoing from the Compton rapper, UMG added that they will protect “any artist who might directly or indirectly become a frivolous litigation target for having done nothing more than write a song.”
