Drake has dropped “key allegations” from ‘Not Like Us’ lawsuit

Universal Music Group’s attorney says that Drake has made changes to his defamation lawsuit against them over their handling of Kendrick Lamar‘s diss track ‘Not Like Us‘.

Last spring, Drake and Kendrick Lamar went back and forth in a historic rap feud. Across various diss tracks, the duo sent scathing shots at one another. The most successful song from the battle was Lamar’s fourth Number One single ‘Not Like Us’, where he called Drake a “certified paedophile”.

On January 15, the Canadian rap superstar filed an 81-page lawsuit against UMG for releasing and promoting ‘Not Like Us’, despite its lyrics containing “false and defamatory accusations of paedophilia.” Lamar was not included in the lawsuit, despite writing the song.

Now, it appears Drake has dropped some “key allegations” from the lawsuit, according to UMG’s attorney.

In a letter to the court filed on Friday (February 21), UMG lawyer Rollin A. Ransom requested that a pretrial conference currently scheduled for April 2 be delayed so that the court would have time to consider Universal’s motion to dismiss the case entirely, per HipHopdx. The company must file the motion on or before March 17.

Ransom also added that the specifics of the case had changed, writing: “[P]ursuant to separate correspondence, Plaintiff has agreed to withdraw certain key allegations in his complaint.” The letter didn’t give details about what those specific allegations were.

In the filing, Drake accused UMG of “whitelisting” reaction videos by high-profile content creators like Twitch streamer Kai Cenat, allowing them to monetise their responses to the diss track without enforcing copyright claims.

According to the lawsuit, this strategy enabled the track’s damaging claims to gain traction online, driving both its virality and UMG’s profits. The rapper also claimed the music conglomerate directly paid influencers to amplify the song’s reach on social media platforms such as Instagram and X/Twitter.

It came shortly after Drake dropped an earlier lawsuit filed against UMG last November, which claimed they “artificially-inflated” the streams for ‘Not Like Us’.

Drake also alleged he “fears for the safety and security of himself, his family, and his friends,” citing the shooting of his security guard outside his home and the multiple trespassing attempts that followed after ‘Not Like Us’ was released.

In addition, he repeated claims that the music giant artificially boosted the popularity of ‘Not Like Us’ through streaming bots and payola, in the hopes of “devaluing Drake’s music and brand in order to gain leverage” in renegotiating his contract.

A UMG spokesperson shared a statement, stating that Drake’s claims “untrue” and “illogical”, adding that he “has intentionally and successfully used UMG” before to engage in “rap battles” and now “seeks to weaponise the legal process”.

Lamar hasn’t commented on any of the lawsuits Drake has filed surrounding the release and success of ‘Not Like Us’.

‘Not Like Us’, smashed numerous streaming records and went on to win five Grammys for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Rap Performance, Best Rap Song, and Best Music Video.

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