After a nearly year-long battle in the courts that ended up lasting longer than the actual rap battle it revolved around, Drake has officially lost his legal case against Universal Music Group. To briefly recap: Drake alleged there was a conspiracy within the halls of his own label to inflate Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” diss against him, zeroing in on the song’s innuendo about Drake being an alleged pedophile as “defamatory,” implying that the label hoped the blows to Drake’s brand would make contract renegotiations with him lean in their favor.
The lawsuit drew all types of divisive commentary and criticism, with some angling that Drake was fighting the good fight taking on the suits who wield power and influence within the business of hip-hop while most agreed that going to court because you lost a rap beef was a decision entirely out of step with the culture of hip-hop. In the midst of the proceedings all manner of unprecedented behavior occurred, with Drake’s legal team at one point putting the onus on UMG to disprove Drake’s diss claims that Kendrick is not the biological father of both of his children and that he has physically abused his partner in the past.
On Thursday October 9, U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas declared that “Not Like Us” advances “nonactionable opinion” that can’t be considered defamatory, at one point describing one of Drake’s legal team’s claims as “Logically incoherent.”
“The artists’ seven-track rap battle was a ‘war of words’ that was the subject of substantial media scrutiny and online discourse,” the judge said. “Although the accusation that plaintiff is a pedophile is certainly a serious one, the broader context of a heated rap battle, with incendiary language and offensive accusations hurled by both participants, would not incline the reasonable listener to believe that ‘Not Like Us’ imparts verifiable facts about plaintiff.”
Vargas went on to cite use Drake’s own disses against him, saying “The recording was published as part of a heated public feud, in which both participants exchanged progressively caustic, inflammatory insults and accusations. This is precisely the type of context in which an audience may anticipate the use of epithets, fiery rhetoric or hyperbole rather than factual assertions.”
A spokesperson for UMG gave a statement to Billboard, saying “From the outset, this suit was an affront to all artists and their creative expression and never should have seen the light of day. 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.”
Surely, Drake will react to this decision maturely and without spite, and will move forward with a new body of work that seeks to get past this dark chapter in his career.
