Spotify sued over AI-generated fake streams inflating major artist play counts
Rapper RBX, a cousin of Snoop Dogg, filed a lawsuit in California alleging that Spotify knowingly allowed bot networks to generate billions of fraudulent streams for major artists like Drake, depriving smaller artists of legitimate revenue.
What happened
A class-action lawsuit was filed on November 2, 2025 in federal court in California by rapper RBX, cousin of Snoop Dogg, alleging that Spotify allowed bot networks to generate billions of fraudulent streams.
The complaint asserts that data analysis shows billions of fraudulent plays were generated for Drake's songs, and that the fraud extends to other major artists as well.
Reported impact
The lawsuit alleges that inflated play counts for major artists reduce the revenue share available to smaller artists, creating 'considerable financial harm' to legitimate musicians, songwriters, producers and rights holders.
The complaint claims Spotify benefits commercially by appearing to have more users than it actually has, and that this serves shareholder pressure to expand the user base.
Index analysis
The class action purports to represent over 100,000 music rights holders who may be unable or unwilling to challenge Spotify directly.
Governance controls
The complaint alleges that Spotify has failed to act with sufficient urgency against the fraudulent streaming schemes, despite their scale and impact on legitimate artists.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.