Universal Music Group is reportedly partnering with the e-commerce platform, SendOwl, to sell digital products and report sales on them directly through its own online stores. According to a report from Kurrco, the move is already raising concerts about transparency and credibility in the music industry.
When DJ Akademiks shared the report on Instagram on Tuesday, music fans quickly cast doubt on the future authenticity of UMG's sales numbers. "'Here’s our sales. Trust us' smh the UMG sales boutta be absurd," one user wrote. Others brought up the legal case Drake has brought against the record label. "Once Drake win this lawsuit, all y’all siding with Lucian stay on that side," another user commented. One more remarked: "Why do yall think ANY company would be honest about their sales ? Record label or not."
Drake's UMG Lawsuit
After weeks of disputes with other labels over sales numbers, UMG has partnered with SendOwl to sell digital products and report sales directly from its own online stores — a move that's now raising questions around transparency and credibility in the industry, since the… pic.twitter.com/fcSrqLTAiN
— Kurrco (@Kurrco) March 24, 2025
As for the aforementioned case that Drake brought against Universal Music Group, he accused the record label of artificially boosting the success of Kendrick Lamar's diss track, "Not Like Us," in an effort to devalue his brand amid contract negotiations. In one recent filing, Drake's lawyers wrote that millions of fans believe Lamar's labeling of the Toronto rapper as an alleged "pedophile." “UMG completely ignores the complaint’s allegations that millions of people, all over the world, did understand the defamatory material as a factual assertion that plaintiff is a pedophile,” Drake’s attorneys write. “UMG also ignores [the lawsuit’s claim] that the statements in question (and surrounding context) implied that the allegations were based on undisclosed evidence and the audience understood as much.”
Universal Music Group has been working to get Drake's case thrown out, calling the lawsuit "meritless." They wrote in one motion to dismiss: “Instead of accepting the loss like the unbothered rap artist he often claims to be, he has sued his own record label in a misguided attempt to salve his wounds.”
