The rap world is no stranger to heated rivalries, but the ongoing feud between Drake and Kendrick Lamar has escalated to a new level, spilling from diss tracks into the courtroom. What began as a lyrical showdown has morphed into a high-stakes legal battle, with Drake accusing Universal Music Group (UMG) of defamation over Kendrick Lamar’s performance of the viral diss track “Not Like Us” at the Super Bowl LIX halftime show. UMG, in a fiery response, has slammed Drake’s claims as “baseless” and warned him to tread carefully, hinting that his legal moves could backfire. This saga highlights the power of a well-timed diss and raises questions about how far a rap beef can go before it builds one artist’s career while potentially destroying another’s.
On April 17, 2025, Drake’s legal team filed a 107-page amended complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, zeroing in on Kendrick’s Super Bowl performance on February 9, 2025. Watched by over 133 million people, the show featured “Not Like Us,” a track that accuses Drake of serious misconduct, including allegations of being a pedophile. Drake’s lawyers called the performance an attempt to
“assassinate the character of another artist,”
arguing that UMG’s promotion of the song, especially on such a massive stage, was intentional defamation. They also pointed to the song’s Grammy wins and its cover art, which marked Drake’s home with symbols associated with sex offenders, claiming it led to real-world harassment, like trespassers and a shooting at his property.
UMG didn’t hold back in their response, which was issued the same day. They called Drake’s lawsuit “frivolous” and accused his legal team of misleading him into “absurd” steps. In a bold statement, UMG warned,
“Be careful what you wish for,”
noting that Drake’s push for discovery could expose him to scrutiny that might hurt his case and reputation. They emphasized that the lawsuit threatens artistic freedom, framing Kendrick’s performance as part of a rap battle where bold insults are par for the course. UMG also referenced Drake’s earlier legal missteps, like dropping a Texas case in November 2024, to paint his current claims as shaky.
This legal drama stems from a rap beef that ignited in 2024, when Kendrick’s “Not Like Us” became a cultural phenomenon, racking up streams and topping charts. Its Super Bowl performance and Grammy wins cemented Kendrick’s dominance in the feud, boosting his career to new heights. For Kendrick, the beef has been rocket fuel, elevating his status as a lyrical heavyweight and cultural force. But for Drake, the fallout has been thornier. The allegations in “Not Like Us” have lingered, and his legal battle risks amplifying them further, especially if discovery uncovers sensitive details.
Hip-hop beefs have been a two-edged blade since the beginning. They can make an artist a star, such as the Jay-Z and Nas war of the early 2000s, in which both of them came out stronger, their reputations cemented by such classics as “Ether” and “Takeover.” History, however, also has the other side. In the 1990s, the East Coast-West Coast beef between Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G., driven by diss songs and media frenzy, escalated into violence and the eventual murder of both artists.
Ja Rule’s career suffered more recently when he had a feud with 50 Cent, whose constant slighting and hit singles such as “In Da Club” pushed Ja Rule’s work into the background, and he struggled in vain to reclaim his previous stature. These are the types of cases in which a beef can both create and destroy an artist based on public opinion and execution.
The stakes are high for both Drake and Kendrick. Kendrick’s masterful use of “Not Like Us” has cemented his fan base and his place as a critically acclaimed rapper, but Drake’s legal confrontation can either clear his name or dig him a deeper hole. Failure may make him unable to deal with a loss in the public’s court of opinion, a defeat to his meticulously constructed reputation. However, a win will establish precedent for artists to be able to confront damaging lyrics, but at the expense of alienating fans who view beef in the world of rap as sacred artistic turf.
