Our five favorite Dunks of the Drake label on his trial “not like us”
Universal Music Group finally replied Drake’s statements That the label has damaged its reputation with the Kendrick Lamar “Not Like Us” dissociating piece, and there is spicy information in there.
UMG, which represents the two artists, argument That the court should reject the Drake trial because he is only the painful loser of a ugly rap battle and cannot safeguard any of his claims. “Instead of accepting the loss as the unpotted rap artist he often claims to be, he continued his own record company in an erroneous attempt to save his injuries,” said UMG in the case.
But this is only the start of UMG’s response. Here are some points that have been released.
Drake previously agreed that prosecutors should not use words against rappers
Although Drake now pursues UMG for defamation, the artist previously agreed that rappers should not be criminalized because of their words. In 2022, Drake, as well as several other eminent artists, signed a letter in support of Young Thug, a rapper whose words were Used against him at the trial. “The trend of prosecutors using the creative expression of artists against them occurs with a disturbing frequency,” said the letter.
This irony is not lost for UMG: “As Drake has recognized, with regard to rap”, ‘[t]The final work is a product of the artist’s vision and imagination. Drake was at the time and wrong now. »»
Everyone expected a great reaction from Lamar
UMG says that Drake cannot claim that “not like us” is defamatory, because the wider context surrounding the song meant that the public provided for the use of aggressive words.
He quotes the “seven previous tracks on which Drake and Lamar have launched increasingly vitrioral allegations”, including the affirmations that Lamar’s son is not his and that he had abused his fiancé. “If there were any circumstances so that the public” anticipate the use of epithets, fiery rhetoric or hyperbole ”, “says UMG.
Drake also used inflamed words
As indicated above, Drake is no stranger to similar vitriole words. UMG claims that he “engaged in the same driving” when he distributed Drake’s song, “Family Matters”, which “is a scathing attack against Lamar, loaded with hyperbolic insults”.
The label continues to refute the allegations according to which “not like us” launched an “call for violence”, as the security guard of Drake Shot in front of the rapper’s house Days after the song. UMG says that “Drake is trying to twist violent metaphors in the words in incitement”.
This adds that the inflamed words are “for the course” in rap music – especially on the dissociated tracks. “The rappers know that their words are exaggerated and not factual; this is part of the crafts,” says the label. “The own Drake’s own tracks used at least images and violent, like sounds of fire.”
Drake recognized controversies in “not like us”
UMG claims that the controversies mentioned in the Diss de Lamar track are “well known”, saying that “the facts and criticism of Drake’s relations with minors are preceding to” not like us “and have been largely reported.”
The label also says that Drake recognized and perpetuated these allegations in his song, “Taylor made freestyle”, which presents A version generated by AI of Tupac’s voice suggest that Lamar should “talk about [Drake] Love young girls. “”
Drake also said that he understood Lamar’s statements in “Not Like Us” to refer to the controversy of Millie Bobby Brown, declaring: “This Epstein angle was the shit that I expected” and “Only damn with Whitneys, not Millie Bobby Browns, I never looked twice without adolescent.” Obviously, Drake himself understands that Lamar’s words refer to well-known problems.
UMG says Drake has no evidence to save his robots and his complaints Payola
UMG rejects drake accusations that the label has artificially inflated the flows of “not like us” using bots and Payola. The label says that Drake based his bots theory on an allegation adopted by an anonymous individual on Twitch, who said that the Lamar label had paid him to increase the flows of the Diss on Spotify.
However, this “dubious source” later said that it was specifically hired by the Lamar manager – not UMG or its subsidiary, interscope. “To be clear, UMG disputes the assertion that anyone has paid or otherwise used robots to inflate the flows of” not like us “, because there is no proof of such a manipulation of flows,” explains UMG. “But the specific assertion that someone affiliated with the UMG has made it is entirely not supported by the source that Drake quotes.”
UMG continues by saying that the allegations of payment for the Drake game are made on information and believe “without saying the base”. He also refutes the allegations of Drake injury and causality. “Drake’s theory – that” whenever recording was played, Drake lost the opportunity for one of his songs to play ” – is extremely speculative and not recognizable,” said the file.
Drake’s lawyer, Mike Gottlieb, does not back down the artist’s initial claims. “UMG wants to claim that this is a rap battle in order to distract its shareholders, artists and the public of a simple truth: a gourmet company is finally held responsible for the profit of a dangerous disinformation which has already resulted in multiple acts of violence”, Gottlieb said to NBC. “This motion is a desperate ploy of the UMG to avoid responsibility, but we have all confidence that this affair will take place and continue to discover the long history of UMG of endangerment, abusing and taking advantage of its artists.”