Will Drake successfully sabotage Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl performance?
Drake’s legal battle with Universal Music Group has been completely rejected by hip-hop culture and has made the emcee a pariah in the genre. Since his loss to Kendrick Lamar in their battle last year, the Scorpion creator has become somewhat of a recluse, and it appears he is not taking his defeat well.
Whether he is on stage talking about the industry and fake or calling hip-hop “weird”, the ‘God’s Plan’ rhymer has continuously expressed his sadness. However, not many are sympathetic to Drake’s cause.
Drake took some legal steps last year by filing two pre-action petitions in a New York court. One of them hinted at a lawsuit over claims that bots and payola were used to push ‘Not Like Us’, while the other accused UMG of defaming him by putting out the song, which he argues is a defamatory piece.
That said, on January 15th, Drake officially took action by filing a federal lawsuit in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York. He accused the company of prioritizing “corporate greed over the safety and well-being of its artists” and claimed defamation, even though it was uncertain if he would go through with a lawsuit initially.
Many people are now wondering if Universal Music Group will let Kendrick Lamar perform his diss track ‘Not Like Us’ because of the lawsuit they’re dealing with. There has been much speculation surrounding whether Drake purposefully filed a lawsuit to stop Lamar from making the most of his latest hit.
‘Not Like Us’ has been a rap music phenomenon. The LA rapper’s 2024 smash recently won ‘Record of The Year’ at the 67th Annual Grammy Awards, and to the disappointment of Drake, fans and critics alike seemed happy to see Lamar receive the honour.
The legendary diss track didn’t just receive one award, though. Over the course of the night, Kendrick Lamar and DJ Mustard earned themselves three in the categories of ‘Best Rap Performance’, ‘Best Rap Song’ and finally ‘Best Music Video.’
‘Not Like Us’ is a hit, and Drake’s motivations for filing a lawsuit seem extremely nefarious largely because he did not take any legal action until news broke that Lamar would be the halftime act of Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, seemingly realising that the world’s biggest stage was about to be graced by a performer dissing him.
The game, which will see the Philadelphia Eagles take on the Kansas City Chiefs, is set to have 100 to 150 million viewers, and although Lamar has performed the song live many times, most notably at his Pop Out: Ken & Friends concert at Inglewood’s Kia Forum Stadium, a Super Bowl rendition would be a career-ending event for Drizzy.
Hip-hop fans are definitely eager to see the creator of DAMN take the stage for ‘Not Like Us,’ but there’s a chance Drake might throw a wrench in the plans. It all depends on what the US District Court for the Southern District of New York decides. Even though Drake and UMG have had their back-and-forths, there’s still no official trial date.
As such, both parties are in the dark concerning whether or not Drake has a case. If, by some miracle, the case is dismissed before February 9th, Lamar will most definitely perform the diss track. However, Drake’s ability to sabotage Kendrick Lamar’s performance all depends on UMG’s hubris and bravery. The sabotage will fail if the record label is prepared to green-light ‘Not Like Us’ amid their defamation case. Still, if the lawsuit has genuinely scared Universal into pulling the track from the setlist, Drake has successfully sabotaged Kendrick Lamar’s Suber Bowl performance.