Drake Takes Massive Loss In "Not Like Us" Lawsuit Against Universal Music Group

Drake took a major legal blow Thursday (October 9), when a federal judge tossed his defamation lawsuit against Universal Music Group, ruling that Kendrick Lamar's chart-topping diss track "Not Like Us" was protected opinion rather than a factual attack.

U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas concluded that the Grammy Award-winning song could not reasonably be interpreted as stating verifiable facts.

"A reasonable listener could not have concluded that 'Not Like Us' was conveying objective facts about Drake," she wrote in her decision.

The Toronto rap star filed the complaint earlier this year, accusing UMG of damaging his reputation by distributing and promoting the song despite knowing it contained false claims. In the lawsuit, he alleged the company made undisclosed payments and offered discounted licensing deals to help the track gain traction while he was in the middle of contract talks.

The legal fight came amid one of the most intense lyrical battles in Hip-Hop history, with Kendrick Lamar and Drake trading increasingly personal diss tracks over several months.



The back-and-forth began in October 2023, when Drake and J. Cole dubbed themselves the "big three" alongside Lamar on "First Person Shooter."

Kendrick Lamar fired back in March 2024 on Future and Metro Boomin's "Like That," rejecting the trio label and declaring "it's just big me."

Drake responded in April with "Push Ups," taking jabs at Lamar's height and business deals. Days later, he dropped "Taylor Made Freestyle," which controversially used AI-generated voices of Tupac Shakur and Snoop Dogg.

Kendrick Lamar escalated the feud with "euphoria" in late April, calling Drake a "scam artist" and "pathetic master manipulator."

The battle intensified with Lamar's "6:16 in LA" and Drake's "Family Matters," which included allegations of domestic violence.

Then came the most explosive tracks. On May 3 and 4, Lamar released "Meet the Grahams" and "Not Like Us," both of which leveled serious accusations about Drake's alleged behavior with minors.

Drake hit back with "The Heart Part 6" on May 5, but many in the Hip-Hop world saw Lamar as the clear victor in the lyrical war. Critics questioned why Drake chose to sue over lyrics, a move many felt clashed with the genre's long-standing tradition of lyrical warfare.

Many argued that pursuing legal action over a diss track could threaten creative freedom in Hip-Hop, where hyperbole and personal attacks have long been part of the art form. Judge Vargas addressed that context directly in her ruling.

"The average listener is not under the impression that a diss track is the product of a thoughtful or disinterested investigation, conveying to the public fact-checked verifiable content," she wrote.

She also noted that the song's language-filled with insults, exaggeration and profanity-signaled it was opinion-based rather than factual.

Neither Drake nor UMG offered public comment following the ruling.


































via: https://allhiphop.com/news/drake-takes-massive-loss-in-not-like-us-lawsuit-against-universal-music-group/