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A judge has rejected Drake's defamation lawsuit targeting Universal Music Group concerning Kendrick Lamar’s track the diss record.

Judge the court’s judge determined that the rapper’s lyrics, which accused Drake and his crew of being "certified paedophiles", were "nonactionable opinion" and cannot be deemed defamatory.

The Canadian rapper submitted the legal action in January, claiming UMG, the music company behind both artists, of defamation by permitting the song to be published and marketed, saying it disseminated a "untrue and harmful story".

Drake's representative stated he planned to challenge the ruling. Universal Music Group said it was satisfied with the result and was looking forward to continuing its collaboration with the rapper.

Context of the Rap Battle

Not Like Us, which was first dropped in May 2024, was widely seen as the final strike in an continuing feud between the rival rappers.

It has become the biggest hit of the rapper’s musical journey, having won multiple Grammy awards and being one of the most-discussed moments of his Super Bowl performance in February.

In a detailed ruling, Judge Vargas called the row between the artists "the most infamous rap battle in the genre's history".

"Both rappers’ series of diss tracks was a 'war of words' that was the subject of substantial media scrutiny and online discourse," the court noted.

"While the claim that plaintiff is a pedophile is certainly a serious one, the wider backdrop of a heated rap battle, with incendiary language and offensive accusations exchanged by each artist, would not incline the reasonable listener to believe that 'Not Like Us' conveys verifiable facts about plaintiff."

She also noted that, in an earlier song, the artist had "challenged Lamar to make the pedophile claims" that appeared in Not Like Us.

On the track his own release, the rapper used the synthetic vocals of Tupac Shakur 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.

"It is in this context in which such lines as 'Hey Drake, I’ve heard you prefer them young' must be assessed," wrote the court.

"The parallel in the phrasing suggests strongly that this line is a clear reference to the artist’s own words in the earlier release."

'A Slap in the Face to Creatives'

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

His legal team alleged UMG of launching "a campaign to generate a viral hit" out of a release that made the "untrue claim that the artist is a convicted predator, and to imply that the audience should resort to extra-legal action in response".

Ruling against the plaintiff, Judge Vargas said fans would not expect "truthful accounts" from a musical attack "replete with vulgar language, insults, violent implications, and exaggerated statements."

She highlighted that Drake himself had used similar language, quoting a line in which the artist "heavily" implied that "Lamar is a domestic abuser", and another where he "raps that he 'heard' that one of his rival’s children may not be biologically his."

Concerning Lamar's song, the court said: "Although apparent statements of fact may assume the character of subjective views... when made in open discourse, intense arguments, or similar situations in which an audience may anticipate the use of epithets, fiery rhetoric or exaggeration."

Reacting to the rejection, a UMG representative said: "From the beginning, this lawsuit was an affront to all artists and their artistic freedom and should not have seen the light of day."

"We're pleased with the court's dismissal and are eager to resuming our work successfully marketing Drake's music and investing in his career," the spokesperson added.

A representative for Drake said the rapper planned to appeal the decision, "and we look forward to the Court of Appeals reviewing it".

Kendrick Lamar has not yet issue a statement on the legal matter.