Reports indicate that Spotify has pushed back against Drake‘s claims that it collaborated with UMG to manipulate the success of Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us,” denouncing the allegations as baseless and criticizing the rapper’s lawsuit as an abuse of legal protocol.
On Friday, December 20, the streaming platform alleged in court that they uncovered zero proof of a bot attack and categorically reject accusations of any arrangement with UMG to promote K.Dot’s track. Spotify’s legal team stated, “The predicate of Petitioner’s entire request for discovery from Spotify is false.” “Spotify and UMG have never had any such arrangement.”
The court documents further questioned why Drake pursued the case at all, dismissing his alleged conspiracies as “far-fetched” and “speculative.” They also raised doubts about Spotify’s involvement, noting that the platform is an outsider to the longstanding feud between Drake, Kendrick, and UMG. Spotify, in turn, criticized Drake for using an unconventional “pre-action” petition instead of filing a formal lawsuit, describing it as an attempt to evade the weaknesses in his claims. The company contended that his allegations wouldn’t withstand scrutiny in court and would likely be dismissed outright.
Spotify’s attorneys said, “What petitioner is seeking to do here … is to bypass the normal pleading requirements … and obtain by way of pre-action discovery that which it would only be entitled to seek were it to survive a motion to dismiss.” “This subversion of the normal judicial process should be rejected.”
Drake Accuses UMG of Organized Crime Tactics in New Legal Battle
Drake brought his legal battle to court last month, accusing UMG of violating the RCIO Act, a federal statute typically used to combat organized crime. He claimed that Spotify was engaged in the scheme, offering reduced licensing fees in exchange for promoting the song. A day later, Drake filed a similar lawsuit in Texas, arguing that UMG had defamed him by releasing a song that falsely labeled him as a “sex offender.”
In its filing on Friday, Spotify contended that civil RICO cases are notoriously difficult to prove, especially when evidence is scarce, as it is with Drake. They stated, “The Petition asserts no specific facts of any kind in support of these alleged RICO and deceptive practices violations.” “Instead, it relies exclusively on speculation … or the claims of anonymous individuals on the internet.”
Spotify’s legal team sought to rebut claims that bot-generated streams could falsely boost Lamar’s track, a major issue in today’s music industry. In an affidavit included in Friday’s court filing, Spotify’s vice president of music emphasized the company’s significant efforts to combat artificial streaming.
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