Drake Sues UMG For Defamation After Withdrawing Pre-Action

Drake filed a pre-action disclosure and preservation of certain documents and communications from UMG in order to decide whether or not to file a lawsuit a couple of months ago. Now he’s withdrawing it after having discussions with UMG that took place today.

Now, it’s unclear why he withdrew and what the discussions were about, but no monetary value was exchanged by either party. There’s not enough information to go off of just yet, especially considering this is only one of two lawsuits Drake has filed against UMG.

Drake has only withdrawn his case against UMG in the state of New York. He also has a case against them in Texas that has not yet been dropped as of the time of this article. A lawsuit hearing for the one in Texas is currently scheduled for the 28th of January, so it’s only two weeks away.

The Texas pre-action suit is against UMG and iHeartMedia for defamation. It’s unclear if this one will also be withdrawn based on the discussions with UMG or if it will continue. This not yet being officially withdrawn does make it all the more intriguing for the New York suit.

Here are all the potential reasons Drake could’ve withdrawn the New York pre-action suit against UMG and Spotify:

Drake Was Never Gonna Win the Case

For all intents and purposes, this is a very likely outcome. It’s possible Drake and his team of lawyers figured out that there was no real case for them or that their chances of winning a settlement of any real monetary value were slim to none. It’s also possible that he wanted the PR nightmare he has going on to be over, and the slim chance simply wasn’t worth the trouble.

It’s also notable Drake is still signed to UMG, so there has to be some level of trouble in having a legal battle against your own label while wanting to release music. Drake is currently set to release his collab album with PartyNextDoor sometime this year. It was initially set for some time last year, but it never came to fruition. It’s unclear if that was because of UMG or the album simply wasn’t ready.

One thing, however, is clear—Drake hasn’t officially released music the same way he was doing pre-beef, signaling some level of trouble with UMG. He’s leaked multiple of his own tracks in an unusual fashion. His 100 GIGS leaks were exclusive to his website for days before hitting streaming with little to no promotion.

He also hasn’t released any tracks by normal means since the beef, outside of being featured on other people’s songs that were all confirmed to be recorded pre-beef.

Would going against the people that control your music and its reach really be worth it for Drake unless he had a clear chance at winning? It doesn’t seem so, which does make him bowing out of this pre-action file entirely possible and likely.

Devil’s Advocate: Why go through all that trouble in the first place if there was never a good case? Costing himself time and being a PR nightmare for him.

UMG and Drake Came to an Agreement

It’s possible the only way forward for both parties was to figure out a deal that made sense for both parties. The only way for that to make sense is Drake is going to get a new deal with UMG. The parties met, and the pre-action suit was dropped very soon after that meeting.

While no monetary value was exchanged, there are ways for money to be involved, and that’s with Drake extending his deal with UMG. Drake revealed on “Family Matters” his current UMG deal makes him $400M and called that a low ball. While it’s unclear when that deal ends exactly, it’s entirely possible it ends soon.

This would set Drake up with either re-upping a deal with UMG, finding another suitor willing to give him more, or going independent. Drake has been the biggest hip-hop artist in the world for a long time now, so it’s very likely that UMG still profited an insane amount of money despite paying Drake $400M.

If Drake believes he’s worth more, it’s possible that this whole thing has always been about a new deal or at the very least the engine of the vehicle. It’s entirely possible Drake leaked the 100 GIGS tracks because of a contract dispute.

It makes sense for both parties. Drake gets back to releasing music and lines his pockets with a new deal, and UMG ends the beef while keeping one of the biggest artists in the world on their side.

Devil’s Advocate: UMG has yet to take a position on Drake’s withdrawal suit. So if they made a deal, why wouldn’t UMG agree with it like Spotify did? And why hasn’t the Texas suit been dropped?

There’s Still Going to Be a Lawsuit

Drake can still sue UMG and Spotify. He’s just let go of the pre-action file of getting the documents requested. It’s entirely possible that Drake will still sue UMG, even if the strategy is unclear.

Drake’s team of lawyers could very well have decided the best way forward was to find other ways instead of using the documents requested, or that they found another way to obtain these records legally. While this is by far the unlikeliest path, it’s still possible.

It would also explain why UMG didn’t take a position on Drake’s withdrawal suit.

There’s a chance that the New York deal was never going to go anywhere, and the Texas suit is where the pre-action really matters. That not being dropped yet does throw a wrench in a lot of things. It’s impossible to know at this stage if either of these suits will lead to actual lawsuits or if they end as pre-action lawsuits, but one thing is clear: Drake has a lot to lose.

Drake is risking losing the PR battle in a landslide. If there is no deal from UMG in it for him, and both pre-action suits lead nowhere, then there is no going back for him. That would be a monumental loss that everyone in the hip-hop community will remember for a long time.

Devil’s Advocate: Why would the discussions with UMG today matter to this decision if there’s still going to be a lawsuit and there’s no pre-action?

Recent Development

During the process of writing this article, a new development has come to fruition, it turns out Drake has gone through with a lawsuit that has been filed in New York for defamation. The suit that alleges UMG published and promoted Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” knowing it contained false allegations against Drake. It also claims that UMG did so to undermine Drake’s brand value in future contract negotiations. Spotify is not named in the lawsuit.

So it does seem like Drake and his lawyers believe there’s a case to be made, and the pre-action documents are not needed. While it’s unclear how this case will proceed, it will determine a lot about the future of hip-hop. 

A beef between the biggest artist in the genre and the biggest label that he’s signed to could be very damaging for both sides. The lawsuit from Drake seeks a fair trial and an undisclosed amount of money. A trial like this could go for years, which would hurt both parties. 

UMG could block any future Drake music, and depending on when Drake’s deal ends, that could be a long time away. It’s possible it ends sooner, or there’s a way out for Drake that makes more sense but as of now, UMG holds a lot of power over his music, which could be very damaging.
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