Stephen A. Smith is the latest commentator to speak on the latest saga in the Drake and Kendrick Lamar beef as he labels Drizzy “weak and sensitive” for filing two legal complaints against UMG (Universal Music Group) over K.Dot’s diss “Not Like Us.”
As we previously shared, on Monday (November 25), Drake filed a legal complaint against his and Kendrick Lamar’s record label distributor Universal Music Group, claiming they boosted the sales and virality of K. Dot’s Drake diss track “Not Like Us.” He also alleged that UMG made shady payments to Spotify. The filing made is not a full-on lawsuit yet, however, a “pre-action” petition under New York law, which seeks more information to file a formal lawsuit.
Both artists have spent their entire careers with UMG. Drake started with Lil Wayne‘s Young Money label, which was distributed by Republic Records (under UMG). He then later signed directly to Republic. Meanwhile, Kendrick Lamar originally signed with TDE, distributed by Interscope (under UMG), and more recently created his own company, pgLang, which is licensed through Interscope.
In his petition filed on Monday in Manhattan, Drake alleges Universal Music Group and Spotify worked together to artificially boost the sales and popularity of Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us.” Drake’s Frozen Moments LLC alleged that UMG orchestrated a “scheme” utilizing bots, payola, and various tactics to make K.Dot’s song go viral.
Drake’s legal team accuses UMG of breaching the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, commonly known as the federal organized crime law, “RICO.” Drake and his team also claim that UMG engaged in misleading business practices and false advertising in violation of New York state regulations. Lawyers for Drake’s company wrote, “UMG did not rely on chance, or even ordinary business practices. It instead launched a campaign to manipulate and saturate the streaming services and airwaves.”
Firing back at the Monday filing, Universal Music Group told Billboard, “The suggestion that UMG would do anything to undermine any of its artists is offensive and untrue. We employ the highest ethical practices in our marketing and promotional campaigns. No amount of contrived and absurd legal arguments in this pre-action submission can mask the fact that fans choose the music they want to hear.”
One day after their initial petition, Drake and his lawyers filed another “pre-action” complaint, this time in a Texas court, accusing Universal Music Group (UMG) and iHeartRadio (iHR) of defamation over Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” diss. On Tuesday (November 26), Drake insisted that UMG and iHR could have pumped the brakes on the release of K.Dot’s scathing record which his filing claims, “falsely accuses him of being a sex offender.”
Drake’s lawyers wrote, “UMG … could have refused to release or distribute the song or required the offending material to be edited and/or removed. But UMG chose to do the opposite. UMG designed, financed, and then executed a plan to turn ‘Not Like Us’ into a viral mega-hit with the intent of using the spectacle of harm to Drake and his businesses to drive consumer hysteria and, of course, massive revenues. That plan succeeded, likely beyond UMG’s wildest expectations.”
After Drake’s two “pre-action” filings, the Rap and Hip-Hop worlds were left spinning. While some agreed with Drake condemning payola and artificial streams and bots, others called the Toronto rapper “soft” and claimed, “The rap streets are done.” Rapper-turned-podcaster Joe Budden went off on Drake and said, “He is a selfish, lying manipulative sack of sh*t who has made enemies for fifteen years, and now we are here at the f***ing boiling point. You have been behind the scenes being the biggest sack of sh*t you could possibly be.”
Joining Joe Budden in slamming Drake for his two separate complaints against UMG over Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us,” is sports and entertainment commentator Stephen A. Smith. During a recent episode of ‘The Stephen A Smith Show,’ the host recapped Drake taking legal action this week and his thoughts on the whole thing.
During the segment, he said, “Let’s get this out of the way right now, it’s a bad look, and it’s all smeared on Drake. All of it. This is hip-hop, man, this is hip-hop. Somebody comes at you with lyrics, with a song, you [are] supposed to come right back at them with the song, with lyrics. I don’t care who pumped what up. If the song wasn’t straight fire, there’s no way it would have had that many hits.” He continued, arguing that this makes Drake look “weak and sensitive.”
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