- Drake has amended his defamation lawsuit to include the performance
- “Drake will expose the evidence of UMG´s misconduct” – lawyer
- UMG tell rapper “be careful what you wish for”
The beef between Drake and Kendrick Lamar seems to intensify with every passing month, and Drake’s latest claims show no signs of it slowing down.
The Canadian rapper is now claiming that he was defamed during Lamar’s performance of Not Like Us at this year’s Super Bowl halftime show.
Read more: A timeline of Drake and Kendrick Lamar’s beef
The show was watched by a staggering 133 million people, making it the most watched of all time – drawing a bigger audience than the football game itself.
Drake made the new allegations on Wednesday as part of a bigger defamation lawsuit against his own record label, Universal Music Group. He first filed the lawsuit over the diss track back in January.
Read more: Has the Kendrick Lamar beef cost Drake money?
Released in 2024, Not Like Us includes lyrics that Drake claims falsely accuse him of being a pedophile. He alleges that UMG, despite knowing about the song’s defamatory content, promoted it heavily – even before the Super Bowl performance
What does the amended lawsuit say?
The amended complaint, filed in federal court in Manhattan, states: “The recording was performed during the 2025 Super Bowl and broadcast to the largest audience for a Super Bowl halftime show ever – over 133 million people, including millions of children, and millions more who had never before heard the song or any of the songs that preceded it.”
It continues, “It was the first, and will hopefully be the last, Super Bowl halftime show orchestrated to assassinate the character of another artist.”
Lamar left out the lyrics “certified paedophile” during the live performance, but according to the lawsuit, that only proves “nearly everyone understands that it is defamatory.
Drake has got a stronger case now
According to Drake’s lawyer, Michael Gottlieb, the amended complaint “makes an already strong case stronger,” he said in a statement.
It adds “Drake will expose the evidence of UMG´s misconduct, and UMG will be held accountable for the consequences of its ill-conceived decisions.”
UMG is the parent record label of both hip-hop stars. Drake is currently signed to Republic Records, a division of UMG, while Lamar is with Interscope Records, also under the UMG umbrella. Lamar himself isn’t named in the lawsuit, as Drake is suing the label for undisclosed damages.
UMG continues to deny Drake’s allegations. The company said: “Drake, unquestionably one of the world’s most accomplished artists and with whom we’ve enjoyed a 16-year successful relationship, is being misled by his legal representatives into taking one absurd legal step after another. It is shameful that these foolish and frivolous legal theatrics continue.”
The label has also responded to the ruling saying “Drake will personally be subject to discovery as well. As the old saying goes, ‘be careful what you wish for.’”
Drake’s lawyers later told CNN, “Drake knows exactly what he asked for: the truth and accountability.”
The amended lawsuit also claims that the defamatory parts of Not Like Us were played during the Grammy Awards in February. The single took home awards in all five categories it was nominated for: Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Rap Song, Best Rap Performance, and Best Music Video.
The lawsuit remains in its early stages, with a potential trial date in summer 2026 – unless a settlement is reached first, which is common in defamation cases.
