Rapper-turned-podcaster Joe Budden calls Drake “a b*tch” while reacting to a judge dismissing his UMG lawsuit over Kendrick Lamar’s diss track “Not Like Us.”
Kendrick Lamar Drops Drake Diss “Not Like Us” And Drizzy Sues UMG For Defamation Over Pedophile Lyric
On October 9, news broke that a federal judge in New York dismissed Drake’s defamation case against his and K.Dot’s record label, Universal Music Group. The case stems from a rap battle between the Toronto rapper and Compton rapper.
Over the course of 16 days, the two rappers came for each other’s necks with eight heated diss tracks. But after K.Dot dropped his Drake diss and massive, award-winning hit “Not Like Us” in May 2024, Drake took their label to court.
In January 2025, sued UMG for defamation and harassment. He alleged UMG intentionally published and promoted Lamar’s diss track while knowing the song’s insinuations that Drake has sexual relations with minors were false and defamatory. Notably, the song lyrics explicitly branded Drizzy as a “pedophile.”
Federal Judge Dismisses Drake’s UMG Defamation Lawsuit Over Kendrick Lamar Diss “Not Like Us”
Judge Jeannette Vargas ultimately determined the allegedly defamatory statements at issue in the lawsuit are “nonactionable opinion.” She also noted that the song — which she said “arises from perhaps the most infamous rap battle in the genre’s history” — “Is replete with profanity, trash-talking, threats of violence, and figurative and hyperbolic language, all of which are indicia of opinion.”
She added, “A rap diss track would not create more of an expectation in the average listener that the lyrics state sober facts instead of opinion than the statements at issue in those cases.” Regrading the pedophile line, Vargas said:
“Although the accusation that Plaintiff is a pedophile is certainly a serious one, the broader context of a heated rap battle, with incendiary language and offensive accusations hurled by both participants, would not incline the reasonable listener to believe that ‘Not Like Us’ imparts verifiable facts about Plaintiff.”
RELATED: Drake Addresses Being Called A Culture Vulture: ‘I Think I Get Really Sensitive About That’
Subsequently, the judge dismissed Drake’s lawsuit against UMG. Drake’s legal team announced their plans to appeal. A spokesperson said, “We intend to appeal today’s ruling, and we look forward to the Court of Appeals reviewing it.” Meanwhile, UMG released a statement in response to the lawsuit being dropped, stating:
“From the outset, this suit was an affront to all artists and their creative expression and never should have seen the light of day. We’re pleased with the court’s dismissal and look forward to continuing our work successfully promoting Drake’s music and investing in his career.”
Joe Budden Calls Drake ‘A B*tch’ While Reacting To New Of Judge Dismissing His UMG Defamation Lawsuit Over Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us”
While taking to a recent episode of his self-titled podcast, Joe Budden reacted to the news of Drake’s dismissed lawsuit. He also speaks directly to Drake, calling him by his first name, and gives him some advice on how to move forward. In a viral clip of Budden’s reaction, he said:
“For the people that missed it: Yesterday evening, somewhere around 6 or 7 o’clock, it was finally confirmed. The news broke that Drake’s a b*tch … I’m not about to come in here and f**king work me to death. He went to court and he lost. The same sh*t that I told y’all 11 months ago rang true yesterday at around 6 o’clock. Some tweet was going around that said Drake lost the n***a way and the White way.”
Budden later said he would never talk to Drake after co-host Marc Lamont Hill wonders what would happen if Drizzy called him. He said:
“I’m not talking to him. Some people have bad juju on them. Don’t put me in no conversation where I have to talk to people that I believe bad juju. His juju’s bad. Mob ties. All you n***as that’s out there—y’all k*lling people, sh**ting kids, and then want to come to the party and dap me up—I don’t need that exchange of energy.”
Budden later issued a message to Drake and said:
“Aubrey, man. Stop being a b*tch. You got this—go to the f***ing embassy. Call up some women—in their 30s, preferably. Light the hookah up with some white wine. Nah mean? We seen you bartend. N***a bartend. Do some fly—make some drinks for the baddies. N***a, chill and smoke some hookah. Just bask in your glory of what you’ve done already. Don’t step on your own dope.
Call Stake, ask for 79 percent of the company, now. My beef wouldn’t even be in music. I would be pressing everybody else. ‘Yo, I need 98 percent of your whole company. I’m Drake. The plane ain’t enough. The plane ain’t enough, now.’ I would be running around, sticking people up off the equity I built…”
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