Defamation Suit Over ‘Not Like Us’ Thrown Out
Drake’s bold move to sue Universal Music Group for defamation, claiming the label unfairly promoted Kendrick Lamar’s diss track ‘Not Like Us‘ and thereby harmed his reputation, has finally found its end in the courts. A Manhattan federal judge ruled that Lamar’s lyrics constitute ‘protected opinion’, not legally actionable statements, and dismissed the case.
The core of Drake’s argument was that the song’s provocative lyrics, including references to sexual misconduct, were defamatory. But the court disagreed, noting that in the context of a heated rap battle, a ‘reasonable listener’ would interpret those lines as hyperbole, metaphor or provocation and not literal claims.
While Drake sued UMG and not Lamar himself, he alleged the label played a role in pushing the track to commercial success, compounding reputational harm. The dismissal is a clear win for labels and artists championing creative freedom, especially in genres that thrive on rhetorical excess.
‘Not Like Us’ released in 2024 and lauded for its lyrical audacity, has won major acclaim and Grammy honors. Its combative tone was always destabilising and now the courts have affirmed that its menace lies in its intent, not its literal truth.
For Drake, the loss is more than legal: it may force a reckoning on how artists navigate beef.
