Drake has initiated legal proceedings against Universal Music Group (UMG) and Spotify, alleging that they collaborated to artificially inflate the streams of Kendrick Lamar’s diss track, “Not Like Us.”
In a petition submitted to the New York Supreme Court on Monday, attorneys representing Frozen Moments LLC, Drake’s company, accused UMG and Spotify of participating in an illegal scheme involving bots, payola, and other tactics to promote Lamar’s song while hindering Drake’s music.
“UMG did not rely on chance, or even ordinary business practices,” the lawyers claimed.
“It instead launched a campaign to manipulate and saturate the streaming services and airwaves.”
The filing claimed that the track, which amassed 96 million streams in just seven days, reached number one on the US charts and became a top 10 radio hit, was licensed to Spotify at a 30% discount in exchange for promotional boosts and user recommendations.
Additionally, Drake has filed a separate lawsuit in Texas, alleging defamation against UMG.
This filing asserted that UMG was aware that “Not Like Us” falsely accused him of pedophilia but still chose to distribute the track.
In response, a UMG spokesperson dismissed the allegations as “offensive and untrue.”
“The suggestion that UMG would do anything to undermine any of its artists is offensive and untrue,” they said.
“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.”
Both Drake and Lamar have had long-standing relationships with UMG, with Drake associated with Republic Records and Lamar with Interscope, both of which are owned by UMG.
