Complain Papi can have a good time a small win in his defamation battle towards Common Music Group, as a decide dominated that his authorized staff can transfer ahead in acquiring key paperwork, together with Kendrick Lamar’s contracts.
Supply: Prince Williams/Wireimage / Prince Williams/Wireimage
Selection experiences that at a current pre-trial convention in New York, Decide Jeanette Vargas dominated that Drake’s attorneys can start deposing UMG executives and requesting data. In accordance with the outlet, Common had sought to place discovery on maintain, arguing that gathering the requested supplies, starting from Kendrick’s contracts to compensation particulars for Interscope CEO John Janick and different execs, could be overly “burdensome.” The decide apparently disagreed.
In accordance with Drake’s lead legal professional Michael Gottlieb, this victory is pivotal.
“Now it’s time to see what UMG was so desperately attempting to cover,” he informed Selection and Legislation & Crime reporter Meghann Cuniff.
As beforehand reported, Common Music Group filed its first court docket response to Drake’s defamation lawsuit final month, and it was suffering from not-so-subtle shade about Drake shedding his battle with Kendrick. In a movement filed Monday, March 17, the corporate mentioned it was in search of to dismiss the lawsuit, calling the case “not more than Drake’s try to save lots of face” after shedding a rap beef.
“Plaintiff, one of the crucial profitable recording artists of all time, misplaced a rap battle that he provoked and during which he willingly participated,” UMG’s attorneys wrote within the submitting. “As a substitute of accepting the loss just like the unbothered rap artist he usually claims to be, he has sued his personal document label in a misguided try and salve his wounds.”
Common additionally famous within the submitting that the Canadian rapper leveled his personal “hyperbolic insults” and “vitriolic allegations” throughout the identical trade of songs, accusing Kendrick of home abuse and even questioning whether or not he was actually the daddy of his son.
“Drake has been happy to make use of UMG’s platform to advertise tracks leveling equally incendiary assaults at Lamar,” the corporate’s attorneys identified within the submitting. “However now, after shedding the rap battle, Drake claims that ‘Not Like Us’ is defamatory. It’s not.”
With discovery now transferring ahead in New York, Drake’s staff will quickly acquire entry to paperwork that would additional form the high-profile case.
A listening to on Common’s movement to dismiss is about for June 30.
