Drake's defamation case against record label UMG dismissed by federal judge
A federal judge in New York has dismissed Drake’s defamation case against his record label, Universal Music Group, stemming from a rap battle with Kendrick Lamar.
Judge Jeannette Vargas determined the allegedly defamatory statements at issue in the lawsuit are "nonactionable opinion" and dismissed Drake’s lawsuit against UMG.
A spokesperson for Drake said in a statement obtained by ABC News that his team intends to appeal the decision.
Drake filed a lawsuit against UMG for defamation and harassment after the release of Lamar's 2024 hit song, "Not Like Us."
Drake alleged UMG intentionally published and promoted Kendrick Lamar's "Not Like Us" while knowing the song's insinuations that he has sexual relations with minors were false and defamatory.
The judge noted the case "arises from perhaps the most infamous rap battle in the genre's history," a vitriolic war of words between Drake and Kendrick Lamar in 2024.
"'Not Like Us' is replete with profanity, trash-talking, threats of violence, and figurative and hyperbolic language, all of which are indicia of opinion," Vargas said. "A rap diss track would not create more of an expectation in the average listener that the lyrics state sober facts instead of opinion than the statements at issue in those cases."
UMG released a statement in response to the lawsuit being dropped, saying, "From the outset, this suit was an affront to all artists and their creative expression and never should have seen the light of day. We’re pleased with the court’s dismissal and look forward to continuing our work successfully promoting Drake’s music and investing in his career."
Over the course of 16 days, the two artists released eight diss tracks with increasingly heated rhetoric, loaded accusations and violent imagery.
Lamar's song went on to win five Grammys, including Song of the Year, Record of the Year, Best Rap Song, Best Rap Performance and Best Music Video at the 2025 Grammy Awards.
He also performed the song at the 2025 Super Bowl.
Drake's lawyers said in a statement at the time that the lawsuit was "not brought against Kendrick Lamar."
"This lawsuit reveals the human and business consequences to UMG's elevation of profits over the safety and well-being of its artists," their statement continued.
UMG responded to the lawsuit in January and said Drake "intentionally and successfully used UMG to distribute his music and poetry to engage in conventionally outrageous, back-and-forth rap battles to express his feelings about other artists. He now seeks to weaponize the legal process to silence an artist's creative expression."
Vargas ultimately decided in the filing on Thursday that "Not Like Us" by Kendrick Lamar, "dealt the metaphorical killing blow."
And while the song contains lyrics explicitly accusing Drake of being a pedophile, set to a catchy beat and propulsive bass line, Vargas concluded that a listener would not take the song to be factual.
"Although the accusation that Plaintiff is a pedophile is certainly a serious one, the broader context of a heated rap battle, with incendiary language and offensive accusations hurled by both participants, would not incline the reasonable listener to believe that 'Not Like Us' imparts verifiable facts about Plaintiff," Vargas said.
