Drake, in Second Action Against Universal Music Group, Claims Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” Is Defamatory

Drake has filed a second legal petition against Universal Music Group (UMG), this time claiming the company should have prevented the release of Kendrick Lamar’s blockbuster diss track “Not Like Us” because it is defamatory, Billboard reports. Drake alleges, through lawyers, that the song damages his reputation by “falsely accusing him of being a sex offender, engaging in pedophilic acts, harboring sex offenders, and committing other criminal sexual acts.” The Bexar County, Texas, filing also accuses UMG of funneling payments to iHeartRadio in a pay-to-play promotional scheme.

The new filing follows a separate petition, in New York, alleging that UMG and Spotify conspired to illegally boost the track’s streams using bots, undisclosed payments, and biased recommendations. Neither action constitutes a lawsuit; instead, they are “pre-action filings” designed to obtain information to support Drake’s claims for a future lawsuit.

In response to the first filing, a Universal Music Group spokesperson denied Drake’s claims, writing, “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.”

“Not Like Us” instantly became a major, debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also recently helped Kendrick Lamar score several nominations at the Grammy Awards. Lamar continued to snipe at Drake on his new album, GNX.

As Variety notes, neither Drake nor Kendrick Lamar is signed directly to Universal Music Group. Instead, Drake is signed to his own OVO, and Lamar is signed to pgLang. Drake licenses his music to UMG’s Republic for marketing and distribution, while Lamar does the same with UMG’s Interscope.