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A judge has rejected Drake's legal claim targeting Universal Music Group over Kendrick Lamar’s track the diss record.

Presiding Judge the court’s judge ruled that the rapper’s song lyrics, which accused the artist and his crew of being "certified paedophiles", were "protected opinion" and cannot be considered defamatory.

Drake filed the legal action in January, claiming Universal Music Group, the record label representing both artists, of defamation by allowing the track to be published and marketed, saying it disseminated a "untrue and harmful story".

The artist’s representative said he planned to appeal the decision. UMG expressed it was satisfied with the result and was eager to resuming its collaboration with the musician.

Context of the Hip-Hop Feud

Not Like Us, which was first dropped in spring 2024, was broadly viewed as the final strike in an ongoing battle between the competing artists.

It has emerged as the biggest hit of the rapper’s musical journey, having won five Grammys and being one of the most-talked about highlights of his Super Bowl half-time show in early 2025.

In a detailed ruling, Judge Vargas called the row between the artists "the most notorious hip-hop feud in the genre's history".

"Both rappers’ seven-track rap battle was a 'verbal conflict' that was the subject of extensive press coverage and digital debate," the court noted.

"Although the claim that plaintiff is a pedophile is undoubtedly a serious one, the broader context of a heated rap battle, with incendiary language and insulting claims exchanged by each artist, would not incline the reasonable listener to believe that 'the track' imparts truthful statements about the claimant."

She additionally observed that, in an previous track, the artist had "challenged Lamar to make the pedophile claims" that appeared in Not Like Us.

On the track Taylor Made Freestyle, the rapper used the AI-generated voice of the late rapper to suggest strategies on how to prevail in the feud.

"Talk about him likin' young girls, that's a gift from me," the track proposed.

"Against this backdrop in which such lyrics as 'Hey Drake, I’ve heard you prefer them young' must be assessed," wrote the court.

"The similarity in the wording strongly indicates that this line is a direct callback to Drake's lyrics in the prior song."

'An Affront to Artists'

The musician, whose legal name is Aubrey Drake Graham, did not name his rival in the legal filing.

His legal team alleged the label of launching "an effort to generate a popular song" out of a track that made the "false factual allegation that the artist is a convicted predator, and to imply that the public should resort to extra-legal action in retaliation".

Ruling against Drake, Judge Vargas said listeners would not expect "truthful accounts" from a musical attack "filled with profanity, insults, threats of violence, and exaggerated statements."

She pointed out that the rapper himself had used similar language, quoting a lyric in which the star "heavily" implied that "Lamar is a spouse beater", and a separate instance where he "raps that he 'was told' that one of Lamar's children may not be his biological offspring."

Concerning Lamar's song, the court said: "Even apparent statements of fact may take on the nature of statements of opinion... when made in open discourse, heated labour dispute, or other circumstances in which an audience may anticipate the use of epithets, passionate language or hyperbole."

Reacting to the rejection, a label spokesperson said: "From the outset, this lawsuit was an insult to all artists and their creative expression and should not have seen the light of day."

"We're pleased with the judge’s ruling and are eager to resuming our work successfully marketing Drake's music and investing in his career," the spokesperson continued.

A spokesperson for the musician said the artist planned to contest the ruling, "and we await the Court of Appeals reviewing it".

Lamar has not yet comment on the case.