AceShowbiz - Drake has intensified his legal battle against Universal Music Group (UMG), filing an amended complaint that underscores the defamation and harassment claims first made in January. The crux of the lawsuit centers around Kendrick Lamar's Super Bowl Halftime Show performance in February, which Drake argues intensified the damage to his reputation.

Drake's legal team argues that Lamar's performance of "Not Like Us," particularly the omission of the word "pedophile" from its lyrics, implied defamatory claims against him.

Even with the censored lyrics, Lamar's performance to over 133 million viewers was said to have introduced countless new listeners to the song's damaging narrative, causing more to believe the falsehoods against Drake.

"It was the first, and will hopefully be the last, Super Bowl halftime show orchestrated to assassinate the character of another artist," they said.

This performance was compounded by Lamar winning big at the 2025 Grammy Awards, where the song was celebrated on a global stage.

In the amended complaint, Drake's legal team expands their lawsuit from 81 to 107 pages. They claim that UMG knowingly promoted Lamar's performance despite the ongoing defamation concerns, exposing millions to the allegations.

Additionally, Drake alleges that UMG turned a blind eye to the use of bots to inflate the song's success on streaming platforms like Spotify.

UMG vehemently denies the allegations, dismissing the lawsuit as "frivolous and reckless." In a statement, the company suggested that Drake is being misled by his legal team into persisting with what they see as baseless legal actions. They warn that the ongoing discovery process could backfire on Drake.

Drake's initial complaint was filed amid claims that UMG had chosen corporate profit over artist well-being, leading to a series of threats and incidents at his home. Despite UMG's efforts to dismiss the case, Drake continues to push for extensive discovery, seeking to expose what he believes is misconduct by the label.