Drake's legal team is pushing back on the court's previous decision to toss his defamation lawsuit against UMG over Kendrick Lamar's infamous Not Like Us diss track. Hot 97 has reported that the Toronto rapper has officially filed a notice of appeal to challenge a federal judge's decision in his case against his previous record label. The feud stems from his beef with Lamar, who famously accused Drake of being inappropriate with minors in his diss track. The rapper has contended that the track tarnished his reputation and is completely bogus. He has accused the record label, which also distributed Lamar’s music, of deliberately promoting the track, despite its “false and defamatory” statements. He also accused UMG of fraudulent business practices, including using bots and payola to spike the track's streaming numbers. The latest developments in Drake's case against UMG explored: Earlier this month, U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas issued a written order in New York noting that Kendrick Lamar's lyrics on his Not Like Us track were a “non-actionable opinion,” which means they don't fall under the defamatory conditions outlined by law. Per Hot97, the judge also said that any “reasonable listener” would not take the rap as the complete truth. “The broader context of a heated rap battle would not incline the reasonable listener to believe that ‘Not Like Us’ imparts verifiable facts about the plaintiff,” the judge wrote. However, in an emailed statement to Straight Arrow News, a spokesperson for Drake said of their plans to push back on the decision: “We intend to appeal today’s ruling, and we look forward to the Court of Appeals reviewing it.” Hot97 has further reported that the rapper has filed his latest motion in the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. He looks forward to having the case move into discovery and trial. The record label has reportedly expressed content with the outcome. Drake and Kendrick Lamar's feud dates back to 2024, when the latter dropped his chart-topping diss track. “Say, Drake, I hear you like ’em young / You better not ever go to cell block one,” and “Certified Lover Boy? Certified pedophile," Lamar raps. In his lawsuit filed shortly after, the Canadian rapper accused UMG of perpetuating a “false and malicious” narrative against him. He also accused the record label and Spotify of inflating the track's streaming numbers by at least 30 million streams. He contended that the track had negative implications for his career. However, UMG has long refuted these claims. “Throughout his career, Drake has intentionally and successfully used UMG to distribute his music and engage in conventionally outrageous rap battles,” a company spokesperson said in a statement to TMZ earlier this year. “He now seeks to weaponize the legal process to silence creative expression and seek damages from UMG for distributing that artist’s music.” Stay tuned to SoapCentral for more.