Drake may have spent most of 2025 occupying the plaintiff’s seat in civil courts, but 2026 is already seeing him take the role of defendant due to shocking claims of illegal gambling practices and payola-like activity.
Alongside streamer Adin Ross and George Nguyen, 5-time GRAMMY winner Drake (born Aubrey Graham) is a named defendant in a class action lawsuit for allegedly promoting an illegal online casino while using proceeds from the site to inflate streams of his music.
In court docs obtained by USA TODAY, the suit, which was filed on December 31, claims the trio used the website Stake.us to “obscure transmissions of money” to advance “their ongoing music botting campaigns.”
It’s worth nothing Drake is the highest-streamed artist in the history of music streaming.
Branding the site “one of the largest and most profitable illegal online casinos,” the lawsuit was filed on behalf of LaShawnna Ridley and Tiffany Hines and also alleges Ross, Nguyen, and Graham used Stake’s tipping program to “directly transfer money between and among themselves…outside the oversight of any financial regulator.”
As if that’s not enough, the lawsuit claims money from the site was used to “create fraudulent streams of Drake’s music; fabricate popularity; disparage competitors and music label executives; distort recommendation algorithms; and distribute financing for all of the foregoing, while concealing the flow of funds.”
Uniquely, those allegations are similar to the one’s Graham previously wielded against his Rap nemesis Kendrick Lamar due to the popularity of his diss track ‘Not Like Us.’
With lawyers claiming the actions of Drake and co. violate the RICO and Virginia Consumer Protection Act, they are demanding both damages and a jury trial.
At writing, Drizzy has not made a public statement responding to the suit.
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