Spotify has officially denied Drake’s recent allegations, claiming that the streaming service assisted Universal Music Group in unlawfully inflating streams for Kendrick Lamar’s diss track “Not Like Us.” In legal papers filed in New York Supreme Court, Spotify labeled Drake’s claims as “legally deficient” and stated that they “should be denied.”
The filings, submitted on December 20, rejected Drake’s accusations that Spotify utilized bots to generate 30,000 streams for “Not Like Us” upon its release, and that financial arrangements were made to promote Lamar’s track unfairly.
The court documents assert, “Contrary to the allegations in the Petition, UMG and Spotify have never had any arrangement in which UMG charged Spotify licensing rates 30 percent lower than its usual rates for ‘Not Like Us’ in exchange for Spotify recommending [the track] to users searching for other artists.”
A statement from Spotify employee David Kaefer emphasized the company’s significant investment in both automated and manual reviews aimed at detecting and mitigating artificial streaming on its platform. Kaefer affirmed that Spotify takes action against any identified manipulation, which may include removing streaming counts, withholding royalties, and imposing penalties. He noted, “This helps us to protect royalty payouts for honest, hardworking artists.”
Spotify also criticized the format of Drake’s legal actions, describing them as “pre-action” petitions rather than formal lawsuits. The filing argued that Drake is attempting to circumvent normal legal procedures to gain access to information typically reserved for a case that survives an initial dismissal.
In response to the situation, a Spotify spokesperson stated: “Spotify has no economic incentive for users to stream ‘Not Like Us’ over any of Drake’s tracks.”
While Universal Music Group has not filed a formal response, a spokesperson previously stated: “The suggestion that UMG would do anything to undermine any of its artists is offensive and untrue. We employ the highest ethical practices in our marketing and promotional campaigns. No amount of contrived legal arguments can mask the fact that fans choose the music they want to hear.”
