What happens when rap rivalries collide with defamation law—and when presidential tariffs collide with the Constitution?
In Episode 8 of Courtside, Etan and Jose break down the Drake v. UMG dispute over Kendrick Lamar’s diss track “Not Like Us,” exploring whether calling someone a “pedophile” in a song can ever qualify as defamation per se—or whether context and artistic expression protect even the sharpest lyrical attacks. They compare the case to Elon Musk’s “pedo guy” litigation and examine how courts decide what a reasonable listener would believe.
Then the conversation pivots to presidential tariffs and constitutional authority. Are tariffs taxes? Can the executive branch impose sweeping trade measures under emergency powers? And how does statutory interpretation shape the boundaries between Congress and the President?
From diss tracks to trade wars, this episode explores how context, language, and power define liability.
