Drake’s lawsuit against Kendrick Lamar regarding the diss track ‘Not Like Us’ was dismissed by a judge on Thursday, marking a significant defeat for the rapper.
Drake, the 38-year-old who started as a child actor before becoming a rapper, had filed a lawsuit against Universal Music Group – the company that owns his record label, Republic Records – claiming defamation. This came after fellow rapper Kendrick Lamar released a hit song where he accused Drake of being a ‘pedophile’.
Judge Jeannette A. Vargas dismissed the lawsuit, finding that the most controversial parts of the diss track aimed at Drake (Aubrey Drake Graham) were opinions, not statements of fact, according to court documents obtained by the Daily Mail.
Neither Drake’s team nor Kendrick Lamar’s has responded to a request for comment from the Daily Mail regarding this matter.
A representative for Universal Music Group (UMG) told the Daily Mail they were happy the lawsuit was dismissed, calling it a harmful attack on artists and creativity. They plan to continue supporting Drake’s music and career.
Okay, so this is HUGE! Drake, my absolute FAVORITE, just addressed all those rumors about him getting work done – can you believe it?! And get this, both he *and* Kendrick Lamar are signed to Universal Music Group. It just…it makes SO much sense, you know? Like, they’re both UMG artists, and it’s amazing to see them both under the same umbrella. I’m obsessed!
Judge Vargas focused on whether the lyrics in Lamar’s song, where he accuses Drake of being a pedophile, could be seen as statements of actual fact.
The central question here is whether the song ‘Not Like Us’ could be reasonably interpreted as a claim that Drake sexually abuses children. Considering the full context of the lyrics, the judge decided it does not make such a claim.
The judge explained that the lyrics in “Not Like Us,” particularly Lamar’s line about Drake, needed to be understood alongside the previous, increasingly hostile diss tracks they’d exchanged. While Drake’s lawyers asked her to evaluate the song on its own, she felt the earlier conflict was crucial context.
Vargas referenced an earlier Drake song, ‘Taylor Made Freestyle,’ where Drake used artificial intelligence to imitate the voice of the late Tupac Shakur and rapped the line, ‘Talk about him likin’ young girls, that’s a gift from me.’
The judge referenced a specific line that seemed to provoke Lamar into claiming Drake had inappropriate interests in underage girls.
She pointed out that the similar phrasing likely means this line is a direct reference to lyrics from Drake’s earlier song.
Vargas pointed out that Not Like Us resembled social media posts more than traditional, in-depth journalism.
She explained that people generally don’t expect diss tracks to be based on careful research or to present accurate, verified information. They’re not seen as reliable sources of facts.
Vargas explained that Lamar’s popular song contained strong language, insults, violent imagery, and exaggerated statements, all of which show it’s an expression of opinion.
She explained that a typical listener would understand Lamar’s lyrics as exaggerated and harsh insults.
Drake’s lawsuit alleged that Universal Music Group tried to inflate the stream counts for his song ‘Not Like Us’ using fake data, but the judge wasn’t persuaded by this claim.
She stated that the evidence presented by his legal team – consisting of individual user tweets and reports from fans – wasn’t strong enough to be considered believable by the court. She found their dependence on these online comments and reports didn’t meet the required standard for plausibility.
Drake sued UMG in January, arguing they released the song “Not Like Us” even though they knew it falsely accused him of being a pedophile and sex offender.
The musician also accused the song ‘Not Like Us’ of inspiring break-in attempts at his Toronto home, and even linked it to the shooting of a security guard at his property in May 2024.
Drake’s mansion had been featured in the single’s artwork, an aerial Google Maps screenshot.
The image used red dots to show where registered sex offenders lived.
Vargas heard oral arguments in the case in June.
After releasing ‘Not Like Us’ in May 2024, Drake became less visible in the public eye, especially in the United States.
He kept touring into 2025, with performances in Australia in February and a European tour with PartyNextDoor lasting from July 11th to September 23rd.
Drake plans to release his ninth studio album, titled *Iceman*, sometime in 2025. This will be his first full-length album since *For All The Dogs*.
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2025-10-10 03:07