Drake says UMG and Spotify used bots and payola to make ‘Not Like Us’ seem popular

By The Verge | Created at 2024-11-25 23:33:48 | Updated at 2024-11-26 01:46:38 2 hours ago

Musically speaking, I’d say Drake lost the tit-for-tat feud this year between himself and Kendrick Lamar, which culminated in Lamar’s hit song “Not Like Us.” But Drake (real name: Aubrey Graham) doesn’t seem to want to accept defeat that easily. In a petition filed in New York’s state Supreme Court on Monday, Drake is accusing Universal Music Group — the label that’s represented him for his entire career and also represents Lamar — and Spotify of shady business practices aimed at making “Not Like Us” more of a hit than it already was:

In 2024, UMG did not rely on chance, or even ordinary business practices, to “break through the noise” on Spotify, and likely other music platforms. It instead launched a campaign to manipulate and saturate the streaming services and airwaves with a song, “Not Like Us.” in order to make that song go viral, including by using “bots” and pay-to-play agreements.

Some artists have been caught using automated tools to juice their streams and profit, and Spotify has a whole section on its website warning fans and artists to be careful of “artificial” streams of music.

It also accuses UMG of giving Spotify a lower licensing rate for “Not Like Us” in exchange for the streaming platform recommending the song to listeners.

“UMG charged Spotify licensing rates 30 percent lower than its usual licensing rates for “Not Like Us” in exchange for Spotify affirmatively recommending the Song to users who are searching for other unrelated songs and artists,” write Drake’s lawyers. “Neither UMG nor Spotify disclosed that Spotify had received compensation of any kind in exchange for recommending the song.”

First reported by Billboard, the action isn’t yet a full lawsuit — Drake’s firm Frozen Moments LLC filed the pre-action petition, seeking information like UMG and Spotify documents and communications dealing with “Not Like Us.” Representatives for Drake, UMG, and Spotify didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

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