Drake Unlikely to Prove Defamation Against UMG, Experts Say

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After testing the waters with two pre-action petitions last November, Drake jumped out the window with a full-on federal defamation lawsuit against Universal Music Group for the distribution of Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” on Wednesday (Jan. 15). The polarizing chess move has turned off some hip-hop fans. Drizzy may end up on the losing end of the legal action, to boot, according to two legal experts.

Entertainment Lawyers Weigh In on Drake Lawsuit

Drake is going after UMG for putting out and promoting “Not Like Us,” which references the Canadian rap star as a child predator. However, Los Angeles defamation and media law attorney Tre Lovell, of The Lovell Firm, believes the OVO head honcho has a slim chance of coming out victorious.

“Drake will likely fail with the central claim of defamation that he makes in the lawsuit,” Lovell tells XXL. “Music content and creativity are given broad free speech protections. Unless some representation is made to the public that the lyrics are true, songs are deemed ‘entertainment’ in general and not actionable. Also, Drake was doing the same thing in his lyrics by accusing Lamar of domestic violence, and as a result, Drake will be seen in court as having ‘unclean hands,’ which is a defense that Universal can present.”

Lovell also believes Drake made a correct move by not adding Kendrick Lamar to the lawsuit.

“Drake and his team acted smartly by leaving off Kendrick Lamar as a defendant because many of the legal theories are based on how Universal marketed and allegedly used underhanded methods to juice Lamar’s song and make it more successful, which has nothing to do with Lamar as an artist,” Lovell adds. “Plus, it may be embarrassing for Drake to sue Lamar over a lyric war in which both have intentionally and voluntarily participated. By making this largely about negotiations leverage, deceptive practices and payola, Drake saves face by going after the label and not Lamar, while also being able to assert his defamation claims.”

Entertainment and defamation law attorney Camron Dowlatshahi agrees but says the outcome of the case could still be a boon for Drake.

“It’s difficult—but not impossible—to imagine a world where Drake and Universal resolve this lawsuit and he stays on with the label,” Dowlatshahi says. “Most likely, Drake will opt to sign with another label or distribute his music exclusively through his own label. He may not right away get the kind of promotion he is used to receiving. But that could be good for Drake, allowing the controversy over this rap beef to die down so he can stage a comeback down the road when fans are dying for some new music from him.”

UMG Responds to Drake’s New Lawsuit

A spokesperson for UMG has released the following statement to XXL in response to Drake’s new lawsuit:

“Not only are these claims untrue, but the notion that we would seek to harm the reputation of any artist—let alone Drake—is illogical. We have invested massively in his music and our employees around the world have worked tirelessly for many years to help him achieve historic commercial and personal financial success.

Throughout his career, Drake has intentionally and successfully used UMG to distribute his music and poetry to engage in conventionally outrageous back-and-forth ‘rap battles’ to express his feelings about other artists. He now seeks to weaponize the legal process to silence an artist’s creative expression and to seek damages from UMG for distributing that artist’s music.

We have not and do not engage in defamation—against any individual. At the same time, we will vigorously defend this litigation to protect our people and our reputation, as well as any artist who might directly or indirectly become a frivolous litigation target for having done nothing more that write a song.”

Drake has yet to publicly comment on the legal action.