The feud between Canadian rapper Drake and five-time Grammy winner Kendrick Lamar has taken a new turn, with Drake claiming Universal conspired with Spotify to inflate the popularity of his rival’s breakaway track, “Not Like Us.”
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Just when we thought the hip-hop wars were over, the feud between Kendrick Lamar and Drake took a surprising turn.
We will not return to the back and forth between the two musicians – a endlessly entertaining beat battle which was the equivalent of throwing a Canadian Chihuahua into a lion’s enclosure and saw Kendrick Lamar emerge comfortably victorious – but it seems Drake can’t seem to get over it.
Indeed, Drake alleged in a lawsuit that Universal Music Group (UMG) falsely inflated the popularity on Spotify and other streaming services of Kendrick Lamar’s dissident song “Not Like Us” – the song that was the final nail in Drake’s coffin and revealed him as the weaker of the two artists.
The motion filed in a New York court by the rapper’s company Frozen Moments LLC demands the preservation and disclosure of information that could be evidence in a possible lawsuit against UMG, which is the distributor of the homes of Drake and Lamar records.
The filing indicates that the record company “launched a campaign to manipulate and saturate streaming services and airwaves with a song, ‘Not Like Us,’ in order to make that song go viral, including using ‘bots’ and ‘pay-to-play’ deals ‘”. The company and Spotify “have a long-standing symbiotic business relationship” and claims that UMG offered Spotify special rates for licensing the song.
The petition also claims that UMG fired employees considered loyal to Drake “with the apparent aim of concealing his maneuvers”.
UMG said in a statement that “the idea that UMG would do anything to harm any of its artists is offensive and false.”
“We apply the highest ethical practices in our marketing and promotional campaigns. No artificial and absurd legal arguments can obscure the fact that fans choose the music they want to listen to.”
Ouch.
Going to court, while not yet legal action, represents a major escalation of the feud, one that reveals Drake can’t accept the fact that he wasn’t good enough , that he not only lost the battle for the dual titles but also the war, and is now grasping at straws. Especially since 2024 was the year of Kendrick Lamar, who had a string of hits, was asked to be to headline the upcoming Super Bowl halftime show and to everyone’s surprise released his new album “GNX” last Friday, to the delight of hip-hop fans around the world.
The song “Not Like Us”, which was a hit with Drake, contains the following lyrics: “Say, Drake, I hear you like ’em young / You better not ever go to cell block one (…) Why you trollin’ like a bitch ? Tu n’es pas fatigué ? / Tryin’ strike a chord and it’s probably A minor” – a reference to the accusation that Drake had relationships with minors (which Drake has denied) – has been streamed more than 900 million times, according to Spotify figures, and has been nominated for five Grammy Awards in 2025. It was nominated for five 2025 Grammy Awards, including Record of the Year and Song of the Year.
Drake has not been nominated for any Grammys.
Although such disagreements are commonplace in hip-hop and it is not yet clear whether the proceedings will proceed to a full trial, Drake is not helping his image with what appear to be petty accusations – all of which have been denied.
To add to this sense of pettiness on the Canadian artist’s part, he recently announced that his first Australian tour in eight years would kick off on the same date as Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show.
