Drake Takes Feud with Kendrick Lamar to Court Over Streaming and Defamation Claims
The feud between Canadian rapper Drake and Kendrick Lamar has reached new heights, with Drake filing legal claims in the US court system against Universal Music. The court documents and media reports on Tuesday revealed that Drake is accusing Universal Music of conspiring to inflate Lamar’s streaming numbers and defaming him.
The ongoing war of words between Drake and Lamar has been a hot topic in the hip-hop community for years. This year, tensions escalated following the release of diss tracks aimed at each other. Lamar’s track “Not Like Us” became a commercial hit, surpassing 900 million Spotify streams and earning multiple Grammy nominations, including Song of the Year. The track included allegations about Drake’s personal life, adding fuel to the fire.
Drake’s legal filings claim that Universal Music Group (UMG) struck a deal with Spotify to offer unusually low licensing fees in exchange for heavy promotion of Lamar’s song to subscribers. Additionally, Drake alleges that UMG used bots to artificially inflate the streaming numbers for “Not Like Us.”
In a separate petition, Drake accuses UMG of distributing a song with offensive content without demanding any edits or changes to the lyrics. He believes that UMG’s actions were intended to harm his public image and generate revenue from the controversy.
UMG has vehemently denied the allegations, stating that they adhere to the highest ethical standards in their marketing and promotional activities. The company emphasized that fans have the freedom to choose the music they want to listen to.
While Drake’s filings are not formal allegations of fraud or defamation, they could potentially pave the way for a future lawsuit. These legal actions come on the heels of Lamar’s surprise album release last Friday and just months before his scheduled performance at the Super Bowl halftime show in February.
