Universal Music Group Beats Drake’s “Not Like Us” Defamation Suit

Universal Music Group will not have to face a lawsuit from Drake, who accused the record company of defamation over its distribution and promotion of Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us.”

Dismissing the case, U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas on Thursday found that Lamar’s diss track advances opinions that can’t be considered defamatory. “A reasonable listener could not have concluded that ‘Not Like Us’ was conveying objective facts about Drake,” she wrote.

Lamar (Interscope Records) and Drake (Republic Records) are represented by two different labels in the UMG system. Their rap battle turned to court earlier this year when the Toronto rapper claimed that UMG, which oversaw the distribution of “Not Like Us,” spread defamatory allegations that he’s a pedophile by making secret payments and offering reduced licensing rates to third parties to promote the song, with the goal of devaluing his music and brand amid contract negotiations.

“From the outset, this suit was an affront to all artists and their creative expression and never should have seen the light of day,” a representative for Universal Music Group said in a statement. “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.”

A rep for Drake didn’t immediately respond to request for comment.

The feud between Drake and Lamar goes back years. On Drake’s “First Person Shooter,” he and J. Cole proclaimed themselves the “big three” alongside Lamar. In response, the Compton rapper rejected the idea that they’re his equals on Metro Boomin and Future’s “Like That.” Several diss tracks followed, with the musicians hurling increasingly spiteful insults at each other relating to accusations of domestic abuse, exploitation and pedophilia. It culminated with Lamar’s release of the anthemic West Coast banger in May, leading to spectators crowning him the winner of the battle.

“Not Like Us” went on to win record and song of the year at this year’s Grammy Awards, and Lamar performed the song during the Super Bowl halftime show as well.

At the heart of the case was whether “Not Like Us” can be understood to convey factual statements that Drake is a pedophile and has had sex with minors. The upshot of the ruling: Context matters. The court stressed that the song was released during a rap battle.

“The average listener is not under the impression that a diss track is the product of a thoughtful or disinterested investigation, conveying to the public fact-checked verifiable content,” Vargas wrote.

The tone of the song reinforces the idea that it can’t be interpreted as fact, the court said. “Not Like Us” is full of profanity, trash-taking and hyperbolic language, “all of which are indicia of opinion,” the order stated.

In the suit, Drake pointed to the lyrics, “Rabbit hole is still deep, I can go further, I promise,” as suggesting that Lamar has concrete evidence to back up his pedophilia accusations. The court disagreed.

“It is not at all clear that this is a natural reading of this lyric,” Vargas wrote. “Even if this line was susceptible to such an interpretation standing alone, however, no reasonable listener could understand it in this way given the overall context.”