Looks like Drake’s got another lawsuit brewing, this time tied to stream manipulation and an online casino. This one’s bound to shake things up.
Drake has found himself in hot water with a new lawsuit that alleges he manipulated music streaming numbers while promoting the online casino Stake. Filed in Virginia on December 31, the suit names Drake, streamer Adin Ross, and an individual named George Nguyen as defendants. LaShawnna Ridley and Tiffany Hines are the plaintiffs behind this case, claiming that the defendants collaborated to promote an illegal online casino and used funds from that promotion to artificially inflate the streaming numbers of Drake’s music.
The lawsuit asserts that Stake misled users and regulators by operating as an illegal gambling platform that utilizes virtual currency rather than real money. The complaint alleges Drake, Ross, and Nguyen improperly transferred money to themselves using Stake’s tipping feature without any regulatory oversight. This points to potential violations of gambling laws and raises questions about the legitimacy of their earnings.
At the core of the allegations lies the claim that Drake, using automated bots and streaming farms, has inflated his play counts across major music platforms like Spotify. The suit details how the rapper purportedly used money earned from Stake to create fake streams, thus fabricating his popularity and hindering competitors. This is not the first time streaming manipulation has emerged as a concern for Drake, as he has faced similar accusations in the past.
A previous class action lawsuit in Missouri also accused Drake, alongside Stake and the other defendants, of misleading teenagers through influencer marketing, stating that they engaged in livestreams under false pretenses. The plaintiffs claimed they represented themselves as actual gamblers, when in fact they were not using their own funds. Additionally, Drake has been implicated in another class action lawsuit against Spotify over claims that he garnered billions of fraudulent streams.
Interestingly, Drake is also entangled in a legal battle where he is the plaintiff. Following a high-profile feud with Kendrick Lamar in 2024, he accused his own label, Universal Music Group, and Spotify of conspiring to inflate Lamar’s streaming numbers. The dispute escalated when Lamar released the track “Not Like Us,” which broke records and garnered significant attention. Although a judge dismissed Drake’s defamation case regarding the lyrics of that song, he has since appealed the decision, and the legal proceedings are set to continue this month.
