Drake claims UMG, Spotify ‘inflated’ Kendrick Lamar’s numbers

In the latest twist in the bruising beef between Drake and Kendrick Lamar, the Canadian rapper has filed lawsuits against Universal Music Group and Spotify over allegations that the two companies conspired to artificially inflate the popularity of Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us”.

The deal is doubly surprising because UMG distributes both artists’ recordings.

In a filing Monday in Manhattan court first reported by Billboardaccused Drake’s Frozen Moments LLC UMG of launching an illegal “scheme” involving bots, payola and other methods to boost the numbers of Lamar’s viciously personal song, accusing Drake of pedophilia and intensifying the already fiery feud between the two artists.

The petition, obtained by Black, alleges that UMG “engaged in conduct designed to artificially increase the popularity of ‘Not Like Us’… including licensing the song at drastically reduced prices to Spotify and using ‘bots’ to create the false impression that the song was more popular than it actually was.”

While other streaming services are not named in the petition, it claims that “UMG appears to have used similar tactics with other streaming services. Upon information and belief, UMG paid or authorized payments to Apple Inc. to obtain its voice-activated digital assistant ‘Siri ‘ intentionally wrongly redirecting users to ‘Not Like Us’.”

“UMG did not rely on chance or even ordinary business practices,” the petition continues. “It instead launched a campaign to manipulate and saturate the streaming services and airwaves.”

Reps for Drake, Lamar, Spotify and UMG either declined or did not immediately respond Black‘s requests for comments.

Drake’s lawyers claim that UMG violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), which is often used in criminal cases against organized crime (and was used to convict R. Kelly of sexual misconduct and other crimes in 2021). They also allege deceptive business practices and false advertising under New York State law.

As Billboard notes, Monday’s filing is not yet a full lawsuit, but a so-called “pre-action” filing — a procedure under New York law intended to secure information before a lawsuit is filed.

But the move is extraordinary in several ways. Earlier this year, Lamar laid out a series of increasingly personal diss tracks against Drake, accusing him not only of having relationships with underage women — which Drake has denied — as well as children that were not disclosed to the public, and has gone as far such as addressing Drake’s son Adonis, his mother and others in his songs.

Drake released songs in response, but soon removed them from his social media and then went silent. The beef subsided after a man was shot outside Drake’s Toronto residence in May, but reignited with the surprise release of Lamar’s new “GNX” album on Friday.

However, he appeared to address the situation late Sunday in a Kick stream with host xQc in which he introduced himself by saying, “I’m Drake, this is xQc, a true streaming legend. Me, I make music if you don’t know.

“I’m here,” he continued. “Fully intact, mind, body and soul, in case you were wondering. You need facts to take me out, fairy tales won’t do,” he added, possibly alluding to the upcoming trial.

He made a similar statement later in the show, adding: “Nothing makes me uncomfortable. I’ve worked too hard to be uncomfortable. Nothing fascinates me like I said, it just takes facts to fold me, fairy tales don’t work.”

Black will have more on the situation as it develops.