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Universal Music Group (UMG) wants the court to throw out Drake’s updated defamation lawsuit in their public feud over Kendrick Lamar’s diss track, Not Like Us.
Drake first sued UMG back in January, claiming they deliberately promoted Lamar’s song because it had damaging and false statements about him. He argued that UMG was running a smear campaign by backing and boosting the song’s popularity. UMG responded in March by asking the court to dismiss the case, saying Drake’s claims had no solid basis.
In April, Drake’s lawyers filed a new version of the lawsuit, adding new points like Lamar’s performance at the Super Bowl halftime show and the song being played at the 2025 Grammy Awards. They said UMG still pushed the track even though they knew it contained controversial and harmful content.
But in UMG’s latest response, they stuck to their original defense and went after these new claims too. They said Drake removed the obviously false parts of his original lawsuit, but the new stuff they added is surprising and still not convincing.
One big point UMG makes is that Lamar’s Super Bowl performance didn’t actually include the offensive lyric accusing Drake and his friends of being “certified pedophiles.” Because that key line wasn’t performed, UMG says this weakens Drake’s entire defamation claim.
UMG’s spokesperson also took shots at Drake’s legal strategy, pointing out that nowhere in the lengthy lawsuit do Drake’s lawyers admit that Drake himself has made popular songs with equally harsh digs at other artists. They also reminded everyone that Drake started this whole back-and-forth with Lamar.
The court papers accuse Drake of cherry-picking random anonymous online comments to try to prove that people saw Lamar’s lyrics as real facts and not just exaggerated insults. UMG called this approach unreliable and said courts usually reject cases based on internet comments like that.
UMG also noted that Drake previously dropped false claims that UMG used bots to boost streams of Not Like Us. In the updated lawsuit, Drake now leans on less trustworthy sources, like a podcast host and deleted social media posts, to suggest Lamar might have used bots to promote the song.
UMG closed by saying Drake’s lawyers can keep chasing wild conspiracy theories all they want, but there’s nothing real to find. They also highlighted that their ongoing work with Drake and his huge success show the truth of the situation.
In simple terms, UMG says Drake’s lawsuit is weak, full of questionable claims, and ignores the fact that Drake himself isn’t exactly innocent in the rap battle drama. They want the case dismissed and believe the courts will see through it.