Drake claims UMG and Spotify boosted Kendrick Lamar diss track

Drake has alleged that Universal Music Group (UMG) and Spotify artificially boosted Kendrick Lamar's Not Like Us diss track, that was aimed astatine him.

Lawyers representing the Canadian artist's steadfast Frozen Moments LLC filed a ineligible petition astatine a tribunal successful Manhattan connected Monday making the claims.

It comes aft Drake and Lamar, who are some signed to UMG labels, had a high-profile feud earlier this year, targeting 1 different with diss tracks.

This included Lamar's Not Like Us azygous which has been streamed astir 900 cardinal times and savagely attacked Drake, making superior allegations against him and those adjacent to him.

The opus proved to beryllium a large deed arsenic the enactment betwixt the 2 hip-hop giants spilled into the nationalist realm.

Such disagreements are not antithetic successful hip-hop but this 1 came betwixt 2 artists who had antecedently collaborated connected a fig of songs.

'Contrived and absurd ineligible arguments'

Drake has claimed that UMG worked to inflate the streams and vigor plays of the diss way "to maximise" profits.

He claimed that UMG and Spotify artificially boosted the track's streams "including by utilizing 'bots' and pay-to-play agreements".

In a connection to Sky News, UMG sharply denied the allegations, with a spokesperson calling them "offensive and untrue".

They added: "We employment the highest ethical practices successful our selling and promotional campaigns.

"No magnitude of contrived and absurd ineligible arguments successful this pre-action submission tin disguise the information that fans take the euphony they privation to hear."

In the ineligible petition, representatives of Drake claim: "It [UMG] alternatively launched a run to manipulate and saturate the streaming services and airwaves with a song, 'Not Like Us', successful bid to marque that opus spell viral."

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It besides claimed that UMG charged Spotify little licensing rates than accustomed to play the opus and that Spotify recommended the opus to users searching for different content.

The petition besides cites the claims of 1 idiosyncratic made connected a "popular podcast" that helium was paid to usage bots to inflate the song's streams.

It besides alleges that Apple integer adjunct Siri "purposely misdirect[ed] users to 'Not Like Us'" citing "online sources".

Monday's filing is not a afloat suit but a pre-action petition - a process successful New York that aims to unafraid accusation up of a lawsuit.

It isn't wide if the proceedings volition advancement to a afloat lawsuit.

Sky News has approached Spotify and Apple for comment.