Drake sues longtime label UMG for defamation over Kendrick Lamar's 'Not Like Us' (updated)

iHeartMedia

15/01/2025 22:13

* 
      Drake says UMG prioritized greed over his safety
    

        * 
      Lawsuit seeks unspecified damages, Lamar not a defendant
    

        * 
      UMG denies Drake's claims, calls them illogical
    

  
 (Adds UMG statement, paragraphs 7-8)
    By Jonathan Stempel
       NEW YORK, Jan 15 (Reuters) - Drake sued his longtime
label on Wednesday, accusing Universal Music Group of defamation
for promoting Kendrick Lamar's "Not Like Us," saying the song's
false accusation that the Canadian rapper is a pedophile has put
him and his family in danger.
    In a complaint in Manhattan federal court, Drake said the
song was "intended to convey the specific, unmistakable, and
false factual allegation that Drake is a criminal pedophile" and
the public should exert "vigilante justice" in response.
    Drake said it led to attempted break-ins at his home,
prompting him to travel with extra security, and pull his
seven-year-old son from his Toronto elementary school and the
Toronto area.
    He and Lamar, an American rapper who won the 2018 Pulitzer
Prize for Music, have feuded for about a decade. The lawsuit
seeks compensatory and punitive damages for defamation and
harassment.
        "UMG may spin this complaint as a rap beef gone legal,
but this lawsuit is not about a war of words between artists,"
according to the complaint from Drake, whose given name is
Aubrey Drake Graham.
    "Notwithstanding a relationship spanning more than a decade,
UMG intentionally sought to turn Drake into a pariah, a target
for harassment, or worse," the complaint added. "UMG chose
corporate greed over the safety and well-being of its artists."
    In a statement, UMG said it has not defamed anyone, called
Drake's claims untrue, and said it would be illogical to harm
his reputation after investing massively to make him
commercially and financially successful.
        UMG also accused Drake of trying to "weaponize" the
legal process in seeking damages, and trying to silence Lamar's
creative expression for "having done nothing more than write a
song."
  
    Lamar is not a defendant, though Drake called "Not Like Us"
defamatory. Drake's lawyers had no additional comment.
    
    COMPETING 'DISS' TRACKS
    Wednesday's lawsuit followed a November petition in a New
York state court in which Drake, through his company Frozen
Moments, accused UMG and Spotify  SPOT.N  of using payola and
streaming bots to promote "Not Like Us" at his music's expense.
    Drake withdrew that petition on Tuesday night. His related
case against UMG and radio company iHeartMedia  IHRT.O  remains
pending in a Texas state court, online records show.
    The feud between Drake and Lamar has played out in part
through so-called "diss" tracks including "Not Like Us."
    In that song, released last May 4, Lamar mentioned Drake by
name, saying "Drake, I hear you like 'em young" and calling him
and others "certified pedophiles."
    A day earlier, Drake released "Family Matters," appearing to
accuse Lamar of physical abuse and infidelity, and questioning
whether Lamar's business partner fathered one of his children.
    "Not Like Us" topped Billboard's Hot 100 for two weeks last
year. It received five nominations for the Feb. 2 Grammy Awards,
including record of the year and song of the year.
    The case is Graham v UMG Recordings Inc, U.S. District
Court, Southern District of New York, No. 25-00399.

 (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by David
Gregorio and Diane Craft)
 ((jon.stempel@thomsonreuters.com; +1 646 223 6317; Reuters
Messaging: jon.stempel.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))