Musician Drake has accused Universal Music Group (UMG) of artificially inflating the popularity of Kendrick Lamar’s diss track “Not Like Us” by employing bots and other manipulative tactics. The allegations were detailed in a pre-action petition submitted to a New York court on Monday.
Drake, who is represented by Republic Records, a UMG subsidiary, claims that the label “conspired to manipulate and saturate streaming services and airwaves” with Lamar’s track. The song, a pivotal element of the ongoing public feud between the two rappers, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in May and has garnered nearly 900 million streams on Spotify.
According to the petition obtained by CNN, Drake alleges that UMG used bots—fake social media accounts—to “artificially inflate the spread of ‘Not Like Us’ and deceive consumers into believing the song was more popular than it was in reality.”
The petition also accuses UMG of employing the controversial practice of payola, where a record company pays intermediaries or radio stations to boost airplay. It further alleges that UMG approved payments to Apple to have its voice assistant, Siri, misdirect users searching for other tracks to “Not Like Us.”
Drake claims that UMG acted to “maximize their own profits” and has refused to cooperate with his attempts to resolve the issue amicably. He filed the petition to obtain additional documents in preparation for further legal action.
UMG Denies Allegations
In a statement to CNN, a UMG spokesperson dismissed the claims as baseless.
“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,” the spokesperson said. “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.”
Kendrick Lamar Not Accused
While the petition centers on “Not Like Us,” Drake’s legal filing does not accuse Kendrick Lamar, who is represented by Interscope Records—also a UMG division—of any wrongdoing.
The track has been the most successful song from the feud between the two former collaborators, earning five Grammy nominations earlier this month.
