Drake's UMG appeal over Kendrick Lamar track 'Not Like Us' to be heard December 4

Drake appeal against UMG over Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Not Like Us’ set for December 4 hearing

September 23, 2026 By Mandy Dalugdug

The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has set a date for oral argument in Drake ‘s appeal against the dismissal of his defamation lawsuit over Kendrick Lamar ‘s Not Like Us .

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Lawyers for Drake and UMG Recordings are due before a three-judge panel on December 4 , according to a scheduling notice entered on the court’s docket on Friday ( September 18 ).

The hearing will be the last stage of the appeal before the panel rules on whether to revive the case, docketed as Graham v. UMG Recordings, Inc. , No. 25-2758 .

Drake, born Aubrey Drake Graham , sued UMG in January 2025 over the release and promotion of the Kendrick Lamar track.

Judge Jeannette Vargas of the Southern District of New York dismissed all of his claims on October 9, 2025, concluding that the allegedly defamatory statements in the song “are nonactionable opinion,” and that a reasonable listener “could not have concluded that ‘Not Like Us’ was conveying objective facts about Drake.”

A spokesperson for Drake said at the time: “We intend to appeal today’s ruling, and we look forward to the Court of Appeals reviewing it.”

A spokesperson for Universal Music Group told MBW after the ruling: “From the outset, this suit was an affront to all artists and their creative expression and never should have seen the light of day.

“We’re pleased with the court’s dismissal and look forward to continuing our work successfully promoting Drake’s music and investing in his career.”

Drake filed a 117-page opening brief at the Second Circuit on January 21, 2026 , arguing that the district court had created a “dangerous categorical rule” that rap diss tracks can never be actionable.

Filed the same day was a separate motion from Drake’s side asking the Second Circuit to certify a question of New York state law to the New York Court of Appeals . That motion was referred to the merits panel on January 27, 2026, according to the appellate docket, meaning it will be decided alongside the appeal itself.

UMG filed its 83-page response brief in late March 2026, arguing that Drake’s case fails because “he seeks to strip words from their context and deem them actionable defamation.”

That brief also told the court that “a rap diss track signals – if not shouts – opinion not fact,” and described Drake’s argument as “astoundingly hypocritical” given his November 2022 support for a campaign against the use of rap lyrics as criminal evidence.

Two amicus briefs supporting UMG followed on April 3, 2026, one from the Floyd Abrams Institute for Freedom of Expression at Yale Law School, joined by Professor Lyrissa Lidsky of the University of Florida’s Levin College of Law, the other from a group of social scientists and legal scholars represented by the UCI Intellectual Property, Arts, and Technology Clinic at the University of California, Irvine School of Law.

The Floyd Abrams Institute brief opened with an analogy: “Suppose a self-assured boxer challenges the world champion to a prize fight, is knocked out on live television, and, with bruised ego and body, files a lawsuit for battery.”

The second brief argued that the assumption behind Drake’s claim “is not just faulty – it is dangerous,” and urged the court to adopt “a presumption that artistic expression is not a factual admission.”

Drake’s legal team at Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP replied on April 17, 2026 , writing that the district court “relied heavily on matters outside the pleadings, weighed the evidence, made adverse factual findings contradicting well-pleaded facts, and improperly drew inferences against Drake.”

Both Drake and Kendrick Lamar release music through UMG – Drake via Republic Records , Lamar via Interscope .

A ruling from the Second Circuit is expected at an unspecified date after the December hearing. Music Business Worldwide

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_Originally reported by [Music Business Worldwide](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/drake-appeal-against-umg-over-kendrick-lamars-not-like-us-set-for-december-4-hearing/)._