{"id":9313,"date":"2026-01-02T21:57:15","date_gmt":"2026-01-02T21:57:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usatrustedlawyers.com\/blog\/rapper-accused-of-funding-fake-spotify-streams\/"},"modified":"2026-01-08T16:37:16","modified_gmt":"2026-01-08T16:37:16","slug":"rapper-accused-of-funding-fake-spotify-streams","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usatrustedlawyers.com\/blog\/rapper-accused-of-funding-fake-spotify-streams\/","title":{"rendered":"Rapper Accused of Funding Fake Spotify Streams"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n\tA new class action lawsuit alleges Drake has used his partnership with online casino Stake to funnel millions of dollars towards artificial stream-boosting campaigns.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe claims come in a legal complaint filed Wednesday (Dec. 31) against Drake, Stake, streamer Adin Ross and Australian national George Nguyen. It\u2019s the latest in a series of recent class actions over Ross and Drake\u2019s endorsement of Stake, which lets users play traditional casino games over livestreams. \u00a0<\/p>\n

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\n\tLike in the previous lawsuits, Virginia residents LaShawnna Ridley and Tiffany Hines allege here that Drake and Ross are complicit in Stake\u2019s illegal use of \u201cvirtual currency\u201d to evade anti-gambling laws. But they also go further, claiming Drake is using the platform for streaming fraud.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cSince at least 2022, Drake and those acting under his direction \u2014 including Ross and Nguyen \u2014 have made use of Stake.com and Stake.us to covertly finance the orchestrated procurement of botting and streaming farm activities to artificially inflate the number of plays attributed to Drake\u2019s catalogue across major digital streaming services such as Spotify,\u201d reads the complaint.<\/p>\n

\n\tAccording to Ridley and Hines, Drake and Ross have used Stake\u2019s \u201ctipping\u201d feature to transfer millions of dollars to Nguyen without any scrutiny from the public or financial regulators. They claim to have seen chat logs and other records proving that Nguyen used these funds to pay for bot vendors at Drake\u2019s behest.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\u201cThese inauthentic streams, injected via interstate digital pathways, were calibrated to mislead royalty and recommendation engines; manufacture popularity; distort playlists and charts; and divert both value and audience attention,\u201d the lawsuit says. \u201cIn tandem, this manipulation has suppressed authentic artists and narrowed consumers\u2019 access to legitimate content by undermining the integrity of curated experiences.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tRidley and Hines are accusing Drake, Ross, Nguyen and Stake of operating a criminal enterprise in violation of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act \u2014 the so-called \u201cRICO\u201d statute typically used to prosecute mobsters and gangs. The lawsuit seeks financial damages and an injunction.<\/p>\n

\n\tA rep for Drake declined to comment on the allegations on Friday (Jan. 2). Stake did not immediately return a request for comment. Contact information for Ross and Nguyen could not be located.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe claims come on the heels of a November lawsuit that alleged Drake has received \u201cbillions of fraudulent streams\u201d on Spotify. The case did not accuse Drake himself of any wrongdoing; rather, it blamed Spotify for turning a blind eye to the problem of bots (allegations that the streaming giant has denied).<\/p>\n

\n\tMeanwhile, Drake himself alleged in a bombshell lawsuit last year that Universal Music Group had used bots to boost the popularity of Kendrick Lamar\u2019s hit diss track \u201cNot Like Us.\u201d A judge dismissed the claims as legally deficient in October, and Drake is now appealing.<\/p>\n


\"Billboard
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