Drake withdraws legal case against UMG accusing them of inflating Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Not Like Us’ streaming numbers
15 January 2025, 15:06
Rapper Drake has withdrawn his legal case against Universal Music Group and streaming services amid claims they 'inflated' the streams of Kendrick Lamar's diss track 'Not Like Us'.
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Drake has taken the step to withdraw his legal petition against Universal Music Group (UMG) and Spotify after accusing the companies of 'inflating' numbers of Kendrick Lamar's viral diss track 'Not Like Us'.
The 'God's Plan' rapper has withdrawn his legal case on Tuesday 14 January, with Drake previously accusing UMG and Spotify of trying to “manipulate and saturate the streaming services and airwaves.”
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However, he has now withdrawn the filing, which was not a lawsuit, but a petition for documents was obtained in preparation for a potential lawsuit filing.
In New York court documents obtained by various publications, Drake has now withdrawn the filing request, with the document reading: “Petitioner hereby voluntarily discontinues this special proceeding as to all respondents without costs to any party.”
It explains that Drake met with reps on January 14th and Spotify, which had filed an opposition, had no objection to the withdrawal and discontinuance, while UMG, which hadn’t filed an opposition, reserved its position.
UMG shared a statement at the time in November 2024 when Drake filed the petition and said: “The suggestion that UMG would do anything to undermine any of its artists is offensive and untrue."
Drake also filed a second petition in Texas, alleging that UMG paid radio conglomerate iHeartRadio to play the diss track 'Not Like Us' and that UMG allowed the release of the song knowing it contained accusations of Drake being a 'certified paedophile'.
Not Like Us has since reached a billion streams, and scored the highest single-day and week-long streams of any rap song on Spotify.
Since the rap beef, Drake has kept a relatively low profile, with Kendrick Lamar releasing a new album called GNX, and is set to headline the Super Bowl halftime show next month.
