A U.S. federal judge on Thursday tossed out a defamation lawsuit Toronto rapper Drake brought against his record label Universal Music Group (UMG) over rival Kendrick Lamar’s Not Like Us, labelling the alleged libelous words in the diss track as opinion.
Judge Jeannette A. Vargas rejected the lawsuit on Thursday in a written opinion.
The January lawsuit alleged that UMG published and promoted Lamar’s Not Like Us even though it included false pedophilia allegations against Drake and suggested listeners should resort to vigilante justice.
Lamar was not named in the lawsuit.
Universal Music Group, the parent record label for both artists, had denied the allegations.
The lawsuit alleged the track led to violence at Drake’s home in Toronto, tarnished his reputation and decreased the value of his brand.
Musician and broadcaster Odario Williams talks about the moment Kendrick Lamar performed his Grammy Award-winning Drake diss track Not Like Us to a sold-out Toronto crowd.
