Drake seeks internal UMG emails, contracts in defamation case

Drake’s legal team has broadened its requests for material in the defamation case against Universal Music Group, targeting internal contracts, executive communications and even allegations of domestic violence linked to Kendrick Lamar. In recent court filings, Drake’s lawyers urge the production of an unredacted version of Lamar’s recording agreement and the exchange of emails involving UMG chief executive Lucian Grainge, arguing that executives’ involvement and strategic decisions around Not Like Us are central to the case. The dispute is unfolding in federal court in New York, with Lamar not named as a defendant despite his role as the author of the allegedly defamatory lyrics and the owner of the publishing rights through Interscope and UMG’s network.

At the heart of the dispute is the allegation that UMG exercised contractual authority over Kendrick Lamar’s music and deliberately promoted a track that Drake says contains defamatory material about him. Drake’s team contends that UMG executives had the power to approve or veto material and that their decision not to block Not Like Us reflects a broader strategy linked to contract negotiations and label competition. The latest...