On Monday, March 17, 2025, Universal Music Group filed a motion seeking to dismiss a lawsuit put forth by Aubrey Drake Graham.
In January, Drake reportedly filed a lawsuit against UMG regarding the label’s promotion of “Not Like Us” by Kendrick Lamar. The lawsuit claims the label’s promotion of the song’s defamatory lyrics, particularly those accusing the star of being a pedophile, have put him and his family in danger. According to the lawsuit, Drake claims “Not Like Us” was “intended to convey the specific, unmistakable, and false factual allegation that Drake is a criminal pedophile” and generate acts of “vigilante justice” in response. More specifically, the complaint claims the song’s defamatory lyrics led to attempted home invasions and forced him to pull his son out of school in the Toronto area.
“Notwithstanding a relationship spanning more than a decade, UMG intentionally sought to turn Drake into a pariah, a target for harassment, or worse,” the complaint stated. “UMG chose corporate greed over the safety and well-being of its artists.”
Attempting to dismiss the lawsuit, a motion filed by UMG argues Lamar’s “Not Like Us” lyrics are “rhetorical hyperbole” and accused Graham of being a hypocrite. The label pointed to a 2022 petition, signed by Drake, that heavily criticizes the weaponization of an artist’s lyrics against them in the court of law.
“Drake was right then and is wrong now,” UMG said. “Diss tracks are a popular and celebrated artform centered around outrageous insults, and they would be severely chilled if Drake’s suit were permitted to proceed.”
In response, Drake’s attorney, Michael Gottlieb, called the motion for dismissal a “desperate” attempt.
“We have every confidence that this case will proceed and continue to uncover UMG’s long history of endangering and abusing its artists,” Gottlieb said.
