In a world obsessive about fame and celebrity that’s hip-hop, optics are every thing. In an quick you possibly can be up; the next minute you could be depressed, not even necessarily due to something you probably did, but due to how something you might be related to looks to the whole world. This is the space Drake is in at once.

November 25, 2024 Drake filed a lawsuit in a New York court alleging that Universal Music Group (UMG), the company that distributes his and Kendrick Lamar’s music, effectively used payola and shady industry moves through streamers to inflate the popularity of Kendrick Lamar’s summer hit and Drake’s diss track, “Not like us.” In fact, Drake claims that without help, the song would not be as popular because it is today industry rule number 4080: “Record company people are shady.”

The irony of that is delicious. Let’s assume this petition finally ends up being a full lawsuit – at this point it’s only a petition and not a lawsuit, although the goal is to assemble information to file a lawsuit – it will also should end in Drake being unmasked. According to Drake, we must always consider that Kendrick Lamar’s summer hit, which overshadowed one in all the funniest rappers in many years, wouldn’t have been as successful had UMG not engaged in questionable business practices. But what’s the scoop there? Should a song only be 75 percent successful? Would that make a difference?

Is the reason my four-year-old likes to say “OV-Hoe” because UMG greased the wheels, or is it because the song is STD-level catchy? Who hasn’t listened to this song this summer? Seriously, I’d like to satisfy someone who’s concerned with popular culture but has only heard it once. I actually am accountable for hundreds of performances. This happened due to the beef and because someone was precisely turning the Boy over. Some things are excellent for everybody.

Conversely, let’s be honest, without these same industry practices, Drake won’t be as wealthy and successful as he’s today. Literally. Drake went from a no person to a any individual almost overnight. It has an awesome story, but come on; A Kendrick song would not catch on organically, but Drake’s entire catalog is so helpful and profitable simply because everyone liked him? This is just silly – and Drake must realize it. Maybe that is the point; possibly Drake knows who’s behind the curtain and has decided that his ethics and morals can now not allow such a king appointment to return at the expense of cultural integrity, especially now that he’s good.

And look, as an instance Drake’s bottom line is that the label distributing his work is using the money he helped them to take part in his destruction. If that is his ultimate goal, then bravo Drake – law school will likely be lunch as Aubrey Drake Graham exposes the shadows of the music industry!

Except hip-hop doesn’t care about law school courses. Hip-hop cares about culture and what Drake just did, when it comes to hip-hop culture, was call the police on Kendrick Lamar because he was being pinned down in a battle where he assumed his brand and popularity would help him win. It looks like Drake is saying that nobody should like “Not Like Us” as much as they do, and it should not be nominated for all those Grammys, and the music video shouldn’t have 200 million views or almost a billion streams on Spotify. The petition (and let’s be honest, a possible lawsuit) states that Kendrick Lamar would not be experiencing the moment he’s having if it weren’t for help at Drake’s expense. This brand now not looks like Teflon in the light.

Drake doesn’t seem to grasp how hip-hop culture works in any respect, which is something I have not claimed before. I’m not one to argue that Drake is just a voyeur using black popular culture for his own gain; this approach at all times seemed very, very unfair. And yet here we’re.

First, getting involved in the law is as hip-hop because it gets. Drake is a snitch now. He looks like the colonizer Kendrick accused him of being in “Not Like Us”; initial text “euphoria” they appear really accurate in the light. Instead of being a man who lost a hip-hop battle, Drake looks like Karen. Is there a shadow coming? Maybe. Probably. The industry is thought for shady practices and constant stiffing of artists. As they are saying, what is thought doesn’t must be explained. But that is public opinion and open secrets, not legal motion. The problem is that Drake filed a motion looking for information that will enable him to bring a case. He doesn’t even have proof, yet he filed a motion to court. He made the laws, brother.

Hey, Drake – Karen called and wants her glass back.

Optics are every thing. Drake called the police because he lost the battle and social media was respiratory down his neck; that is what the whole thing is. Especially since the legal part is irrelevant to hip-hop’s credibility. No one except the labels (and Drake, I assume) cares the way it ends.

Sure, when the dust settles, we’ll all speak about it, yes, yes, yes, yes, but people will at all times keep in mind that Drake filed a lawsuit against Kendrick Lamar over “Not Like Us.” As of now, Kendrick is not even mentioned in the petition; only a label. Culturally, nonetheless, Drake is taking aim at Kendrick in court over a battle he’s losing with each passing day. 2024 was a hopeless yr for The Boy.

I actually wonder what was going through the minds of Drake and his team after they decided it was time to withdraw this petition, knowing that it will have the very same effect on his appearance. I do not understand this game in any respect.

I’m sure some Drake apologist will tell us it’s chess, not checkers, but if that’s the case, possibly Drake is not good at chess either.

For the second day in a row Drake took legal motion against Universal Music Group, this time in Texas Kendrick Lamar diss track “Not Like Us”.

The result is analogous reporting in New York on Monday, through which Drake accuses UMG of falsely inflating the recognition of “Not Like Us” on Spotify and other streaming services.

These two legal moves have taken the bitter feud between the 2 hip-hop superstars to a complete latest level, and the parent company of each men’s record labels has now been drawn directly into the fray.

Tuesday’s indictment filed in Bexar County accuses UMG of engaging in “irregular and improper business practices” to acquire radio airplay of “Not Like Us,” including making illegal payments to San Antonio-based iHeartMedia. The petition, a precursor to a possible lawsuit, seeks testimony from corporate representatives of each firms.

The lawsuit alleges that UMG allegedly knew that “the song itself, in addition to its accompanying album cover and music video, attacked the character of one other of UMG’s most distinguished artists, Drake, by falsely accusing him of committing a sex crime, engaging in pedophilic acts, harboring sex offenders and committing other criminal sexual acts.”

The filing points out that “the song calls Drake a ‘certified pedophile,’ a ‘predator,’ and an individual whose name should ‘be recorded and placed on a neighborhood watch.’

The petition states that Drake may sue UMG for defamation, amongst other things.

A UMG representative didn’t immediately reply to an email looking for comment on the brand new filing. In a press release Monday responding to the New York report, the corporate said that “the suggestion that UMG would do anything to undermine the standing of any of its artists is offensive and unfaithful. We apply the very best ethical practices in our marketing and promotional campaigns.”

An email sent to an iHeartMedia representative looking for comment also didn’t immediately receive a response.

The New York petition also previews a possible lawsuit and alleges that fired UMG employees were perceived as loyal to Drake “in an apparent attempt to conceal his plans.”

The repeated legal maneuvers represent a serious and maybe unprecedented escalation within the hip-hop dispute, especially since at its center is a label representing two of music’s biggest stars.

Drake, 38, a five-time Grammy Award-winning Canadian rapper and singer, and Lamar, 37 Pulitzer Prize winner who shall be the foremost character of the following one Super Bowl halftimethey collaborated occasionally over a decade ago.

That modified when Lamar began publicly attacking Drake in 2013. Fight it intensified rapidly earlier this 12 months.

“Not Like Us,” Lamar’s wildly popular single released in May, was a very brutal moment within the two artists’ barrage of duels.

Donald Trump is putting the White House so as by introducing controversial nominations of individuals holding the very best positions in the federal government.

Comedian Rickey Smiley believes that along with his second presidency approaching, the country “would be happy to be in a constitutional crisis.”

The radio show host is now more convinced than ever that Trump’s seemingly outlandish claims about how he plans to make America great again were not only statements made in jest to drum up support, but as an alternative he was presenting his agenda.

Smiley, in a live chat with fans earlier this month, said the media didn’t take the Republican’s words literally.

For example, at a June campaign event in West Palm Beach, Florida, he told attendees they’d never must worry about casting a ballot if he won the 2024 presidential race. “Christians, get out and vote, just this time. You won’t must do that anymore. Over the subsequent few years, you understand what, it will be fixed, it will be advantageous, you will not must vote anymore, my beautiful Christian women.” he said Trump.

On TikTok, Smiley told his viewers that Trump’s vision of civic engagement would come true. “There will be no more elections,” he said. But also that “it’s nothing compared to what will actually happen.”

With his victory over Democratic vice chairman nominee Kamala Harris, the Senate and House of Representatives will also be run by the GOP, further enabling the struggling public official to pass a lot of his proposed legislative actions.

One of the important priorities of the pinnacle of “The Apprentice” is to issue a decree allowing mass deportations.

@rickeysmileydigital

We would be lucky if there was a constitutional crisis

♬ original sound – Rickey Smiley

His decision was also prompted by Trump’s belief that the 2020 election was rigged in favor of Democratic President Joe Biden announce“A massive fraud of this nature and scale allows for the lapse of all rules, regulations and articles, even those contained in the Constitution.” Smiley warned his fans: “You have no idea what you’re getting into.”

“He’s going to take over the military. … He doesn’t care about Senate confirmation or anything like that,” Smiley continued.

Even though people like Linda McMahon and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. were nominated to move the Department of Education and the Department of Social and Health Services, respectively, they could not assume office without the consent of the Senate, except by nomination in the course of the recess.

“They are not interested in the Constitution and democracy is over – and that is simply a fact,” the comic said. Moreover, Smiley warned that the civil unrest of 2020 would come to light again.

“They are preparing to eliminate everything,” he continued. “You think this was something in the 1960s… I wouldn’t be surprised if they said buses were for black people and buses were for white people and black people had to sit in the back of the plane. … Some black people will die before they become anything close to slavery again.”

DAMN! Trump tells his supporters that if elected, there will be no must vote again!

You still don’t think he desires to be a dictator?

pic.twitter.com/uHWeBSkhHU

— Tea Pain (@TeaPainUSA) July 27, 2024

He also darkly predicted: “You’re going to have a bunch of racists here who are just killing black people, knowing that nothing can be done about it. It’s going to get dangerous. Enjoy this silence, enjoy these final months of this Biden administration. … We are heading towards dictatorship.” There were mixed reactions within the comments to his message about Trump’s “open season.”

The fan agreed: “You are very correct!! Sad, that’s what these (orange emoji) Cult Followers are asking.” Another lemon drink he wrote“Every person he elects is on his feet, similar to Trump. But you are right, everyone will find something for themselves.

And a third person said: “He said what he was going to do. The fact that he is a convicted criminal, a misogynist, a racist, a fraud and a child of God. When someone shows you who they are, believe them. God bless the USA.”

However, several people were unhappy with the artist. One commenter asked, “Why create fear?” The second person told the comic: “you are ignorant.”

Trump will be inaugurated on January 20, marking the primary time a convicted felon and twice-impeached president will take office.