The high-profile legal battle stemming from one of the most talked-about feuds in hip-hop history has reached a decisive point in a New York federal courtroom. Rapper Drake had filed a lawsuit against his own record label, Universal Music Group (UMG), alleging defamation and harassment after the company released and promoted a rival's immensely popular yet highly controversial diss track. This legal challenge centered on the heated lyrical war between Drake and Kendrick Lamar that erupted in the spring of 2024, a back-and-forth that the court has now thrown out, and fans have already begun to react to it.

According to reports sourced by Complex Music, in a major development for the music industry and free expression, U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas has thrown out Drake’s lawsuit against UMG. The core of the ruling determined that the highly inflammatory accusations contained within Kendrick Lamar’s Grammy-winning song, ‘Not Like Us,’ constitute "nonactionable opinion," rather than verifiable facts that could be considered defamatory, Judge Vargas’s written opinion underscored the context that a listener would not believe a rap diss track, which is full of profanity, trash-talking, or threats of violence, to be a sober investigation of facts.

The ruling is a clear victory for UMG, which releases music for both artists. Despite the court's conclusion that Lamar's song dealt the metaphorical killing blow in the rap battle, Drake's legal team is not conceding the fight. According to reports sourced by Complex Music, a spokesperson for the rapper has confirmed they "intend to appeal the ruling," signalling that the legal chapter of this bitter music rivalry is far from over. After the judgment was passed, fans took to the stage of internet.

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The news of the defamation lawsuit's dismissal has been met with amusement from fans online, who are interpreting the court's decision as the final, definitive victory for Kendrick Lamar.

Many social media users have taken to celebrating the outcome, with several proclaiming that hip hop wins again. The judge's finding that the intense lyrics were non-actionable opinion was seen by this segment of the audience as legal confirmation of the loss of Drake, who suffered in the lyrical feud. The celebratory mood is even reflected in comments about listening to Lamar's diss track, ‘Not Like Us’, in commemoration of the legal ruling.

The reaction has also included a significant amount of mockery directed at Drake for pursuing legal action after what was widely considered a decisive artistic loss.

Comments online suggest that filing the lawsuit and subsequently losing it has only compounded the embarrassment, with some sarcastically noting that the legal battle simply prolongs this without changing the narrative.

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