50 Cent recently shared his thoughts on Drake’s legal actions against Universal Music Group (UMG), offering his perspective on what might be motivating the Toronto rapper’s bold claims.
Last month, Drake filed two pre-action petitions accusing UMG of using underhanded methods to boost the success of Kendrick Lamar’s diss track “Not Like Us.” The petitions allege that UMG employed streaming bots and payola to artificially inflate the song’s success and defamed Drake by releasing a track that labeled him a sex offender. These filings are not lawsuits but are designed to gather evidence ahead of potential legal action.
Speaking with Cam’ron on the Talk With Flee YouTube show, 50 Cent speculated that Drake might be trying to prevent Kendrick from performing the song at the Super Bowl halftime show next year. “I’ve never seen a rap battle end up in court,” 50 remarked, suggesting that Drake’s team is using the legal route to stop the NFL from increasing the song’s visibility. Since UMG and Apple are connected to the Super Bowl, he believes they might be tied up defending themselves in the lawsuit.
50 also suggested that Drake’s lawyers likely warned the NFL about the potential legal consequences of airing Kendrick’s track, which could reignite the song’s popularity and harm Drake’s image.
Furthermore, 50 hinted that Drake’s legal actions could be a strategic move against UMG, with whom he signed a $400 million deal in 2022. Drawing from his own industry experiences, 50 claimed that UMG may not have defended Drake during the feud with Kendrick because they stood to gain more from Kendrick’s success. “Everything Drake says in that petition—they did it,” 50 added.
