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A judge has rejected the rapper Drake’s legal claim targeting the music corporation over Kendrick Lamar's track the diss record.

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

Drake filed the lawsuit in January, claiming UMG, the music company behind the two rappers, of defamatory conduct by allowing the song to be published and promoted, saying it disseminated a "false and malicious narrative".

Drake's spokesperson stated he intended to appeal the ruling. Universal Music Group said it was pleased with the result and was looking forward to resuming its collaboration with the rapper.

Context of the Hip-Hop Feud

Not Like Us, which was first dropped in May 2024, was widely seen as the decisive blow in an continuing feud between the competing artists.

It has emerged as the most successful track of Lamar's musical journey, having won multiple Grammy awards and being one of the most-discussed moments of his Super Bowl half-time show in early 2025.

In a detailed ruling, the judge called the row between the rappers "the most infamous rap battle in the history of rap music".

"The artists' seven-track rap battle was a 'war of words' that was the subject of substantial media scrutiny and online discourse," the judge noted.

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

She additionally observed that, in an earlier song, Drake had "dared Lamar to make the pedophile claims" that featured 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 song suggested.

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

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

'A Slap in the Face to Creatives'

Drake, whose legal name is Aubrey Graham, did not sue Lamar in the lawsuit.

His legal team accused UMG of initiating "an effort to generate a viral hit" out of a track that made the "untrue claim that Drake is a criminal paedophile, and to imply that the public should turn to vigilante justice in retaliation".

Deciding against the plaintiff, Judge Vargas said listeners would not expect "accurate factual reporting" from a musical attack "replete with profanity, insults, violent implications, and figurative and hyperbolic language."

She pointed out that the rapper himself had used similar language, referencing a line in which the artist "heavily" suggested that "Lamar is a spouse beater", and another where Drake "raps that he 'heard' that one of Lamar's sons may not be his biological offspring."

Concerning the track in question, the court said: "Although seemingly factual claims may assume the character of statements of opinion... when made in public debate, intense arguments, or other circumstances in which an listener may expect the use of epithets, passionate language or exaggeration."

Responding to the rejection, a UMG spokesperson said: "From the beginning, this case was an affront to every creative and their creative expression and never should have been filed."

"We're pleased with the judge’s ruling and are eager to continuing our partnership effectively marketing the artist’s work and investing in his artistic path," the spokesperson added.

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

Kendrick Lamar has yet to comment on the legal matter.