Drake has launched yet another legal action against Universal Music Group, this time accusing the major label of defamation and claiming it could have stopped releasing a song that “falsely accused him of being a sex offender.”
New documents filed late Monday and made public Tuesday allege that UMG “conveyed payments” to iHeart Radio as part of a “pay-to-play program” to promote Kendrick Lamar’s hit song ” Not Like Us”.
The Toronto star said in the complaint that UMG knew Kendrick’s song “falsely” accused him of being a “certified pedophile” and “predator” but chose not to block its release.
“UMG … could have refused to release or distribute the song, or have requested that the offending material be edited and/or removed,” Drake’s attorneys wrote. “But UMG chose to do the opposite. Universal Music Group designed, financed and executed a plan to turn ‘Not Like Us’ into a viral hit in order to capitalize on the damage done to Drake and his company. To drive consumer hysteria and, of course, huge revenue, the plan succeeded, perhaps beyond Universal Music Group’s wildest expectations.
Just like yesterday when Drake accused UMG of licensing “Not Like Us” to Spotify at a lower price to increase streaming media plays, this is not a formal lawsuit, but a pre-litigation document aimed at obtaining key UMG and iHeart People’s testimony was taken in an effort to obtain more information that might support Drake’s allegations in future lawsuits, according to Billboard.
The new Texas filing is another unexpected twist in the highly publicized feud between Kendrick and Drake, which has captivated music fans around the world this year.
It’s also a sign that things aren’t always good between Drizzy and UMG, which has been his label home since the beginning of his career, first through a deal with Lil Wayne’s Young Money Records, which Released by Republic Records and then signed a deal directly with Republic.
