"Because you lost a rap battle?" — Charlamagne Tha God reacts to Drake accusing UMG of inflating Kendrick Lamar's Not Like Us' popularity

In a recent exchange that has set the hip-hop world abuzz, Charlamagne Tha God shared his thoughts on Drake's accusation that Universal Music Group (UMG) is inflating the popularity of Kendrick Lamar's song Not Like Us.

On November 25, 2024, Charlamagne Tha God shared The Shade Room's post regarding Drizzy's recent accusations against UMG and Spotify.

"Come On Man. Because you lost a rap battle? Dot said Squabble Up Not Lawyer Up. 😂 I'm just here for the chaos. Let's Discuss," Charlamagne Tha God wrote in the caption.

The rap battle that Charlamagne Tha God refers to began in March 2024 with the release of Kendrick Lamar's Like That. In response, Drizzy fired back with a diss track titled Push Ups. Over the following two months, the two artists exchanged a series of back-and-forth diss tracks.

On May 4, 2024, Lamar dropped Not Like Us, just 14 hours after the release of Drizzy's Meet the Grahams. Not Like Us quickly became a massive hit, with many, including Billboard, suggesting that the track solidified Lamar’s victory in the rap battle. The feud culminated on May 5, 2024, with the release of Drizzy’s The Heart Pt. 6.

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Charlamagne Tha God weighs in on Drake's claims against UMG

On Monday, November 25, Drake's legal team filed a court claim alleging that UMG and Spotify wrongfully inflated the popularity of Not Like Us and received unreported compensation, according to The Verge.

Charlamagne weighed in by suggesting that Drizzy's actions may stem from his frustration over losing the rap battle with Kendrick Lamar. This is not the first time Charlamagne Tha God has addressed Drake’s loss in the rap battle to Kendrick Lamar.

On May 11, 2024, during an appearance on his podcast Brilliant Idiots with co-host Andrew Schulz, Charlamagne analyzed the feud and pointed out that throughout the entire rap battle, and said that the Canadian rapper only directly responded to Lamar in his track The Heart Part 6 —

"He’s got the perfect out to say he won the battle, even though we all know he lost, He never engaged with Kendrick one on one except for ‘The Heart Part 6," Charlamagne said.

He further added,

"'Family Matters’ he talks about a bunch of different rappers. ‘Heart Part 6’ is the one where he really just talked to Kendrick directly."

On October 7, 2024, during an appearance on The Breakfast Club, Charlamagne Tha God suggested that the feud has had a significant impact on the Canadian rapper.

"Drake is hurting! Oh my God! He is hurt! ... When I tell you Kendrick Lamar put his foot all the way up Drake’s a*s," Charlamagne Tha God said.

In a petition filed in New York’s State Supreme Court on Monday, November 25, Drake's legal team alleged that UMG charged Spotify licensing rates 30 percent lower than its standard rates for Not Like Us.

Additionally, the petition claims that neither UMG nor Spotify disclosed the compensation they received for recommending Not Like Us to listeners.

In response, UMG spokesperson James Murtagh-Hopkin told Billboard that the company upholds the highest ethical standards in its marketing and promotional campaigns, firmly denying all claims made by Drizzy's legal team.

As the legal proceedings continue, there has been no further information regarding the progress of the payola allegations, and Kendrick Lamar has not yet commented on the matter.