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A court official has thrown out Drake's defamation lawsuit against the music corporation concerning Kendrick Lamar’s song the diss record.

Judge the court’s judge ruled that the rapper’s song lyrics, which claimed Drake and his crew of being "pedophiles", were "protected opinion" and cannot be deemed libelous.

The Canadian rapper filed the lawsuit in early this year, accusing Universal Music Group, the record label behind the two rappers, of defamatory conduct by allowing the track to be released and promoted, saying it disseminated a "untrue and harmful story".

Drake's spokesperson said he planned to challenge the decision. UMG expressed it was pleased with the result and was eager to continuing its collaboration with the musician.

Context of the Rap Battle

The diss song, which was first dropped in May 2024, was broadly viewed as the final strike in an ongoing battle between the competing artists.

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

In a 38-page order, Judge Vargas called the row between the rappers "the most notorious hip-hop feud in the genre's history".

"The artists' series of diss tracks was a 'verbal conflict' that was the subject of substantial media scrutiny and online discourse," the court wrote.

"While the accusation that Drake is a pedophile is undoubtedly a serious one, the wider backdrop of a heated rap battle, with provocative remarks and offensive accusations exchanged by both participants, would not lead the reasonable listener to believe that 'the track' conveys truthful statements about the claimant."

She additionally observed that, in an earlier song, the artist had "dared Lamar to make the pedophile claims" that featured in Not Like Us.

On the song his own release, Drake used the synthetic vocals of the late rapper to give Lamar advice on how to prevail in the feud.

"Suggest he has a preference for minors, consider that a tip," the track proposed.

"It is in this context in which such lyrics as 'Hey Drake, I’ve heard you prefer them young' must be assessed," wrote Judge Vargas.

"The similarity in the wording strongly indicates that this lyric is a clear reference to the artist’s own words in the prior song."

'A Slap in the Face to Creatives'

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

His legal team alleged UMG of initiating "a campaign to generate a viral hit" out of a release that made the "untrue claim that the artist is a criminal paedophile, and to suggest that the public should turn to extra-legal action in retaliation".

Ruling against Drake, the judge said listeners would not expect "truthful accounts" from a diss track "filled with profanity, trash-talking, threats of violence, and exaggerated statements."

She highlighted that Drake himself had used similar language, quoting a line in which the artist "heavily" suggested that "Lamar is a spouse beater", and a separate instance where he "claims that he 'heard' that one of Lamar's children may not be biologically his."

Regarding the track in question, the court said: "Although apparent statements of fact may assume the character of subjective views... when made in public debate, heated labour dispute, or similar situations in which an audience may expect the use of epithets, fiery rhetoric or hyperbole."

Reacting to the rejection, a UMG representative said: "From the beginning, this case was an insult to all artists and their artistic freedom and should not have been filed."

"We are satisfied with the court's dismissal and are eager to continuing our work effectively marketing the artist’s work and investing in his career," the representative added.

A representative for Drake said the artist planned to contest the ruling, "and we look forward to the Court of Appeals examining it".

Lamar has yet to issue a statement on the case.