Drake‘s legal battle with Universal Music Group over Kendrick Lamar’s diss track, “Not Like Us” could be set to take another dramatic turn as the music label has asked a Texas court to toss out the pre-action petition he filed against them in November.
In a motion to dismiss filed in Bexar County on Thursday, January 23, UMG claims that the Toronto rapper (who is signed to them through Republic Records) has insufficient evidence to support his allegation that they engaged in payola to spread Kendrick’s hit diss song.
The company also argues that the release and promotion of the track are protected under the First Amendment.
“Because [Drake’s] petition is related to and was filed in response to UMG’s protected free speech, and because [Drake] cannot carry his burden to establish by clear and specific evidence that he is entitled to pre-suit discovery, the Court should dismiss [Drake’s] retaliatory legal action against UMG,” the filing reads.
UMG continues: “[Drake] provides nothing outside of his verified petition, which alone cannot provide an evidentiary basis for a petition. Even looking into the petition […] there is no evidentiary support for his asserted need for pre-suit deposition of UMG.”
The music giant also calls Drizzy’s claim that they secretly funnelled payments to radio stations to play “Not Like Us” “hearsay” and “not admissible as evidence.”
UMG further argues that the petition should be dismissed as the 6 God “did not file [it] in a ‘proper court’” as required by state law and has “already filed suit on his potential claims, obviating any need for pre-suit discovery,” referencing the defamation lawsuit he filed against UMG in federal New York court earlier this month.
They additionally claim that instead of addressing his grievances with Kendrick Lamar, Drake “has resorted to strategic legal retaliation against UMG and others, in an apparent effort to pressure them to limit the distribution of ‘Not Like Us.’”
They also call his recent wave of legal filings a “nationwide effort to harass and retaliate against UMG for exercising its free speech rights.”
Universal are not only looking to have the petition thrown out, but they also want Drake to cover their legal fees. They are also requesting a hearing on their motion to be scheduled within 60 days and the court to “suspend all discovery related to this matter” until a ruling has been made.
Drake and his legal team have yet to respond to the filing, but a hearing is currently scheduled for January 28 to determine whether the rapper can depose employees of UMG, as well as iHeartMedia, for a potential future lawsuit.
This hearing may not go ahead as planned, however, if the petition is dismissed or a delay is ordered by the judge.