Months after a federal judge tossed out Drake’s defamation lawsuit against Universal Music Group and lyrics in Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” track, the Canadian rapper born Aubrey Graham hopes to revive his claims in newly filed paperwork. As reported by Rolling Stone, this week Drake and his legal team filed an opening appellate brief to overturn the judge’s previous ruling.
In his effort to revive his bid against UMG and the Grammy award-winning diss track, Drake argues that Lamar’s lyrics describing him as a “certified pedophile” are presented as an “unambiguous matter of fact.” The brief also argues that the allegation possesses a “precise” and easily understood meaning that is “capable of being proven true or false.”
In Oct. 2025, Judge Jeannette A. Vargas rejected Drake’s initial defamation suit in a written opinion that began by citing “the vitriolic war of words” and saying the case arose “from perhaps the most infamous rap battle in the genre’s history.” She ultimately categorized Lamar’s lyrics insinuating pedophilia as “non-actionable opinion” rather than a matter of fact.
“The issue in this case is whether ‘Not Like Us’ can reasonably be understood to convey as a factual matter that Drake is a pedophile or that he has engaged in sexual relations with minors,” Judge Vargas wrote at the time, per Rolling Stone. “In light of the overall context in which the statements in the recording were made, the court holds that it cannot.”
However, Drake claims that the lyrics, paired with the virality of the song, its “ubiquitous cover art,” and music video reasonably suggest a misleading assertion of fact which he believes should be presented in front of a jury at trial. According to the recently filed brief, the Canadian rapper believes the court’s dismissal created a “dangerous categorical rule” that protects artists and labels from defamation liability despite how direct the statements may be.
“The court effectively created an unprecedented and overbroad categorical rule that statements in rap diss tracks can never constitute statements of fact,” the brief noted.
Drake initially filed his lawsuit against UMG in January, claiming that the label conspired to inflate the popularity and presence of the record by a UMG artist at the expense of Drake, also a UMG artist, by actively promoting a record alleging he was a pedophile.
UMG has since denied these allegations stating, “From the outset, this suit was an affront to all artists and their creative expression and never should have seen the light of day. We’re pleased with the court’s dismissal and look forward to continuing our work successfully promoting Drake’s music and investing in his career,” in response to the judge’s initial dismissal.
