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A court official has rejected the rapper Drake’s defamation lawsuit against Universal Music Group concerning Kendrick Lamar’s song Not Like Us.

Judge the court’s judge determined that Lamar's lyrics, which claimed the artist and his associates of being "pedophiles", were "nonactionable opinion" and cannot be deemed libelous.

The Canadian rapper filed the legal action in January, accusing Universal Music Group, the record label behind the two rappers, of defamation by permitting the song to be published and marketed, stating it disseminated a "untrue and harmful story".

Drake's representative said he intended to appeal the decision. UMG said it was pleased with the result and was looking forward to resuming its collaboration with the musician.

Background of the Hip-Hop Feud

The diss song, which was first dropped in May 2024, was widely seen as the final strike in an continuing feud between the competing artists.

It has emerged as the most successful track of Lamar's career, having received five Grammys and being one of the most-discussed moments of his Super Bowl performance 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".

"The artists' seven-track rap battle was a 'war of words' that was the focus of extensive press coverage and online discourse," the court noted.

"Although the accusation that plaintiff is a pedophile is certainly a grave allegation, the wider backdrop of a intense musical rivalry, with incendiary language and offensive accusations hurled by each artist, would not incline the reasonable listener to believe that 'Not Like Us' imparts verifiable facts about the claimant."

She also noted that, in an previous track, Drake had "dared Lamar to make the pedophile claims" that appeared in the diss record.

On the song Taylor Made Freestyle, Drake used the synthetic vocals 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 song proposed.

"Against this backdrop in which such lyrics as 'Say, Drake, I hear you like 'em young' must be evaluated," stated Judge Vargas.

"The parallel in the phrasing strongly indicates that this line is a direct callback to the artist’s own words in the earlier release."

'An Affront to Artists'

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

His legal team accused the label of initiating "an effort to create a popular song" out of a track that made the "false factual allegation that Drake is a criminal paedophile, and to imply that the audience should turn to vigilante justice in retaliation".

Deciding against Drake, Judge Vargas said listeners would not expect "truthful accounts" from a musical attack "replete with vulgar language, trash-talking, threats of violence, and figurative and hyperbolic language."

She pointed out that the rapper himself had used comparable rhetoric, referencing a lyric in which the artist "strongly" implied that "his opponent is a domestic abuser", and a separate instance where Drake "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 assume the character of statements of opinion... when made in open discourse, heated labour dispute, or other circumstances in which an audience may expect the use of slurs, fiery rhetoric or hyperbole."

Responding to the dismissal, a UMG representative said: "From the beginning, this lawsuit was an insult to all artists and their creative expression and never should have seen the light of day."

"We are satisfied with the court's dismissal and are eager to continuing our partnership successfully promoting the artist’s work and supporting his career," the spokesperson added.

A representative for the musician said the artist intended to contest the ruling, "and we await the appellate court reviewing it".

Kendrick Lamar has not yet comment on the case.