Drake has launched legal action against Universal Music accusing the label of artificially boosting streams of Kendrick Lamar’s diss track against him, Not Like Us.
In papers filed in New York, Drake’s company, Frozen Moments LLC, accused Universal and the streaming giant Spotify of engaging in an illegal ”scheme” involving bots, payola and other methods to promote Lamar’s song.
Universal Music ”did not rely on chance,” Drake’s lawyers alleged. “It instead launched a campaign to manipulate and saturate the streaming services and airwaves.”
A spokesperson for Universal called the claims “offensive and untrue”, adding that “fans choose the music they want to hear”.
Spotify and Lamar have yet to respond.
The petition is not a full lawsuit but a so-called “pre-action petition”, under which Drake’s lawyers can to ask the court to order Universal and Spotify to preserve all relevant documents and information, ahead of future legal action.
The BBC understands the action is principally aimed at Universal, with Spotify named in the belief it may have information that would be relevant to a lawsuit.
