As the evidence collection process gets underway in Drake’s defamation lawsuit against Universal Music Group (UMG) over the Kendrick Lamar diss track “Not Like Us,” Drake’s legal team has included some high-profile names on a surprisingly long list of potential witnesses.
Drake’s so-called “initial disclosure” filing lists 63 people and entities whom he believes have evidence that could help his bombshell case against UMG. The document is dated June 2 but wasn’t made public until Monday (July 14) as an attachment to Drake’s motion to subpoena a man named Kojo Asamoah, whom the rapper claims was involved in paying bots to artificially inflate streaming numbers for “Not Like Us.”
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While inclusion on this list doesn’t necessarily mean someone will be deposed or called to testify at trial, the individuals and companies named here could be asked to hand over documents to Drake’s legal team as part of the evidence discovery process.
The central allegation of the lawsuit is that UMG plotted to boost the popularity of Lamar’s chart-topping Interscope Records track, in which he called Drake a “certified pedophile.” UMG, which also owns Drake’s label Republic Records, vehemently denies the claims as “meritless.”
To that end, Drake’s initial disclosure names lots of UMG employees as potential witnesses in the case. But beyond seeking information from the people who handle music marketing on a day-to-day basis, the Canadian rapper seems to believe the conspiracy went all the way to the top of UMG, since he names CEO Sir Lucian Grainge as a source of information about “all causes of action” in the case.
And Grainge isn’t the only UMG bigwig on the list. Also named are Universal Music Publishing Group chief Jody Gerson, Interscope CEO John Janick and Republic co-founders Avery Lipman and Monte Lipman.
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Drake has not accused Lamar himself of defamation, and the Los Angeles rapper is notably absent from Drake’s potential witness list. But he does name multiple high-profile people and businesses associated with Lamar, including former Top Dawg Entertainment president Dave Free and manager Anthony Saleh.
As Drake’s lawyers look for evidence of an alleged conspiracy to inflate the popularity of “Not Like Us,” the list states that streaming platforms like Amazon Music, Apple, Deezer, Soundcloud, Spotify and TIDAL should share details about UMG’s “promotion and licensing of the defamatory material” and “use of covert tactics to promote the defamatory material.”
Social media sites like TikTok, Twitch, YouTube and Instagram are also named as sources of this same information, as is Billboard.
Drake’s list targets live events as well. A number of the possible witnesses are entities involved in the production of Lamar’s 2025 Super Bowl halftime show performance, which, according to an updated version of the lawsuit, included a rendition of ”Not Like Us” out of an alleged desire to “assassinate the character of another artist.”
Lawyers for the Canadian superstar say the NFL, Fox and Roc Nation could all have information about the “decision to play the defamatory material at the 2025 Super Bowl.” Drake is seeking similar details from the Recording Academy, asking what actions UMG took “to have the defamatory material featured at the 2025 Grammy Awards,” where “Not Like Us” swept up five trophies.
UMG’s initial disclosure is also attached as an exhibit to the Monday motion. The music giant’s witness list, dated March 24, is significantly shorter than Drake’s by a factor of seven. It names just nine potential witnesses, including Drake and various record executives.
Unlike Drake, though, UMG’s potential witness list also names Lamar himself.
“Lamar is likely to have discoverable information concerning the creation of the recording, image and video, and the distribution and promotion of the recording and video,” write UMG’s lawyers.
Reps for UMG and Drake’s legal team both declined to comment on the witness lists on Monday.
These revelations come amid a wait for a decision on UMG’s motion to dismiss the case outright. Judge Jeannette A. Vargas in New York federal court held a hearing at the end of June on the question, and her upcoming ruling will determine whether or not Drake’s claims are legally viable enough to move forward.