Drake Withdraws Legal Petition Accusing Spotify and Universal Music of Artificially Inflating Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Not Like Us’

variety.com:

Steven J. Horowitz Senior Music Writer Drake has withdrawn his petition against Spotify and Universal Music Group after accusing the entities of launching an illegal “scheme” to boost numbers for Kendrick Lamar’s hit diss track “Not Like Us.” In a New York filing on Tuesday reviewed by Variety, Drake and his Frozen Moments company withdrew its order to show cause seeking pre-action disclosure and preservation of certain documents and communications from both companies.

The court document explains that Drake met with representatives on Tuesday 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.

Drake made waves in Nov. 2024 when he first accused UMG — which distributes both his and Lamar’s music — of using bots and payola to juice the numbers for “Not Like Us,” a track that accuses Drake of pedophilia and cultural appropriation.

The petition, which was not a full lawsuit but rather a “pre-action” move, claimed that UMG “engaged in conduct designed to artificially inflate the popularity of ‘Not Like Us’…including by licensing the song at drastically reduced rates to Spotify and using ‘bots’ to generate the false impression that the song was more popular than it was in reality.” UMG shared a statement with Variety at the time, denouncing Drake’s accusations. “The suggestion that UMG would do anything to undermine any of its artists is offensive and untrue,” read the statement. “We employ the highest ethical practices in our marketing and promotional campaigns.