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A judge has rejected the rapper Drake’s defamation lawsuit against the music corporation concerning Kendrick Lamar’s song the diss record.

Judge Jeannette Vargas decided that the rapper’s song lyrics, which claimed the artist and his associates of being "certified paedophiles", were "protected opinion" and cannot be deemed defamatory.

Drake filed the lawsuit in January, claiming Universal Music Group, the record label representing both artists, of defamatory conduct by permitting the song to be released and promoted, saying it spread a "false and malicious narrative".

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

Background of the Hip-Hop Feud

The diss song, which was first dropped in spring 2024, was broadly viewed as the decisive blow in an ongoing battle between the competing artists.

It has emerged as the most successful track of the rapper’s career, having won five Grammys and being one of the most-discussed moments of his Super Bowl half-time show in February.

In a 38-page order, the judge called the dispute between the artists "the most infamous rap battle in the history of rap music".

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

"While the accusation that plaintiff is a child predator is certainly a serious one, the wider backdrop of a heated rap battle, with provocative remarks and insulting claims exchanged by both participants, would not lead the reasonable listener to believe that 'the track' imparts truthful statements about the claimant."

She also noted that, in an previous track, the artist had "dared his rival to make the pedophile claims" that featured in Not Like Us.

On the track Taylor Made Freestyle, the rapper 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 track suggested.

"It is in this context in which such lyrics as 'Say, Drake, I hear you like 'em young' must be assessed," wrote Judge Vargas.

"The parallel in the phrasing suggests strongly that this lyric is a clear reference to the artist’s own words in the prior song."

'An Affront to Artists'

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

His legal team alleged the label of launching "an effort to create a popular song" out of a release that made the "untrue claim that Drake is a convicted predator, and to imply that the public should turn to vigilante justice in response".

Ruling against Drake, Judge Vargas said listeners would not expect "truthful accounts" from a musical attack "filled with profanity, insults, threats of violence, and exaggerated statements."

She pointed out that the rapper himself had engaged in comparable rhetoric, referencing a lyric in which the star "strongly" implied that "Lamar is a spouse beater", and another where Drake "raps that he 'heard' that one of Lamar's sons may not be biologically his."

Regarding the track in question, the court said: "Although apparent statements of fact may assume the character of statements of opinion... when made in open discourse, intense arguments, or other circumstances in which an listener may expect the use of slurs, passionate language or hyperbole."

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

"We're pleased with the court's dismissal and are eager to resuming our partnership successfully marketing the artist’s work and investing in his artistic path," the representative continued.

A representative for Drake said the artist planned to contest the decision, "and we look forward to the appellate court reviewing it".

Lamar has not yet comment on the legal matter.