Drake has filed a second lawsuit against Universal Music Group (UMG), accusing the company of defamation over Kendrick Lamar’s diss track, “Not Like Us.”
The petition, filed in Bexar County, Texas, claims that UMG knowingly released the song, which falsely accuses Drake of being a sex offender and engaging in other criminal sexual acts.
Drake’s legal team argues that UMG had the chance to prevent or modify the track’s content but chose to release it to capitalize on its viral success, despite the harm to Drake’s reputation.
In this new filing, Drake’s lawyers also allege that UMG engaged in “irregular and inappropriate business practices” to promote the track, including making illegal payments to radio stations for airplay and manipulating streaming data on platforms like Spotify.
This follows an earlier lawsuit filed in New York, where Drake accused UMG of inflating streams and using deceptive marketing tactics around the song’s release. “Not Like Us” has accumulated over 900 million streams since its debut in May 2024.
UMG has publicly denied the allegations, asserting that they follow ethical marketing practices and that the claims made by Drake are baseless.
The company emphasized that fans ultimately choose the music they wish to hear and rejected any suggestion that they would undermine their artists. This ongoing legal battle highlights the intensifying rivalry between Drake and Kendrick Lamar, with both artists’ labels now directly involved in the conflict.
