Spotify is challenging Drake’s legal filings, which claim they colluded with UMG to artificially inflate Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us.”
Spotify files motion to dismiss Drake’s legal bid
On Friday (December 20), Spotify’s lawyers responded to Drake’s pre-suit petition. In the filing, the legal team said Drake’s claims were false.
“The predicate of the applicant’s entire request What Spotify found was wrong: There was no such agreement. But anyway, the petition It is legally deficient and should be denied,” the lawyers wrote.
“Applicants only provide information–and–Believe in speculation rather than good–The document goes on to state the facts. show all that is speculativeThe investigation laid out the elements of civil RICO, deceptive business practices and false advertising claims that the applicants sought to assert.
A Spotify spokesperson also provided the following statement to XXL:
“Spotify has no financial incentive to allow users to stream “Not Like Us” on any of Drake’s tracks. The Spotify for Artists tool Marquee was purchased on behalf of the track for only €500 to promote the track in France. Marquee is a Visual ads, exposed to users as sponsored recommendations.
Read more: Drake takes legal action against UMG and Spotify over Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Not Like Us’, and fans react violently
Is Drake’s legal action backfiring?
As early as November 25, Drake submitted two pre-litigation petitions against UMG to the New York and Texas Supreme Courts. The New York filing alleges that UMG and Spotify used bots and Payola to boost the number of K-Dot chart-topping Drake diss songs. In doing so, Drake claims the companies violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, the New York State Deceptive Business Law and the New York State False Advertising Law.
The Texas filing, in addition to the defamation charges, accuses UMG and iHeartRadio of running similar schemes. The move resulted in Drake receiving harsh criticism on social media from some fans, who believed the request was made because he was unhappy about being defeated in a rap battle with Kendrick.
Both cases are due to be heard in court in January.
