Joe Budden Claims ‘Karen’ Drake Is Ruining Hip Hop With UMG Lawsuit

Joe Budden has ripped Drake for filing a defamation lawsuit against Universal Music Group over Kendrick Lamar‘s “Not Like Us,” calling him a “Karen” who is ruining Hip Hop.

The rapper-turned-podcaster aired his grievances with the bombshell suit on the latest episode of his eponymous show, adding to the chorus of criticism aimed at the 6 God for taking legal action in a rap beef.

During a lengthy and scathing segment, Budden accused Drizzy of being a hypocrite over his claim that UMG incited a 2024 shooting at his Toronto home, as well as multiple trespassing incidents, by promoting “Not Like Us” and its “threatening” lyrics.

“When [Drake] and I got into whatever we got into and them fans showed up to my house, he incentivized that, he cheered them on, he put them on a public platform, he applauded that behavior,” he said.

He also criticized Drake’s tough-guy persona by saying: “You at the game running around with this n-gga that has been threatening Kendrick saying, ‘I’ma kill you, I’ma do X, Y, Z,'” referring to fellow Canadian rapper Top5 who recently beat a murder case and threatened to shoot Kendrick if he comes to Toronto.

“You know how you running around with and you know what you doing and you know what you threatening. So if you that, then be that. But don’t be that and also Karen out […] I don’t like it. It’s nasty and disgusting.”

Budden added: “That’s my beef with ‘Mob Ties’ Drake. I miss Drake. There are too many artists that are suffering from an identity crisis or begin to lose themselves when they get in this shit. I miss original Drake.

“The n-gga with the Blackberry and the corny T-shirts that couldn’t dress with no beard that everybody just wanted to get next to and get some of that corny sauce. Y’all knew that n-gga wasn’t like us, but he had the magic touch.”

The former Slaughterhouse MC further accused Drake of hurting Hip Hop culture with the lawsuit and squandering the opportunity to rebalance the scales of power within the music industry.

“This shit hurts. This is like the Hip Hop version of the House seats where they’ve been dominated for 90 years and now we got this one small window where we can make a change and see these labels take a fall,” he said. “And the few n-ggas that could have done it, y’all end up fighting with each other, taking a deal and only looking out for self.

“There’s no unity in Hip Hop, none of y’all know what culture means — actually, they’ve been telling y’all what culture means ’cause they own the shit. This shit is a fucking mess. It’s disgusting. And if you love this shit, it hurts!

“I’m saddened as a diss track king, as a n-gga who loves to get on the mic and tell lies about my opponent. Horrible things get said [in rap beefs], man. I just don’t like the Karen play-both-sides, the aggressor and the victim.”

He added: “Y’all can have it. It ain’t my Hip Hop. Maybe I aged out of this shit faster than I thought I would. But all this shit y’all doing… nah, not for me. I love [Hip Hop] too much.”

Budden also claimed that Drake has little chance of winning his legal battle with UMG and that the lawsuit could even destroy his career.

After co-host Ish argued that Drizzy “has a right” to complain about his own label promoting a song that brands him a pedophile, Budden countered: “He’s well within his right to do so, yes. But no other artist would think about doing it because it’s the end of your career. The same way this is going to be the end of his career.”

UMG has vehemently denied the allegations of defamation and harassment within Drake’s lawsuit, saying in a statement: “Not only are these claims untrue, but the notion that we would seek to harm the reputation of any artist — let alone Drake– is illogical.”

The music giant also argued that they have “invested massively” and “worked tirelessly” to help his career and that Drizzy “now seeks to weaponize the legal process to silence an artist’s creative expression and to seek damages from UMG for distributing that artist’s music.”

“We have not and do not engage in defamation — against any individual. At the same time, we will vigorously defend this litigation to protect our people and our reputation,” the company added.