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rap star drake Popular video game streamer Adin Ross faces a class-action lawsuit for allegedly promoting an online sweepstakes casino and using the proceeds to “create fraudulent streams of Drake music.”
In documents filed in Virginia federal court on Dec. 31 and reviewed by multiple media outlets, residents LaShawnna Ridley and Tiffany Hines accused Drake, Ross and an Australian named George Nyugen of Partnering with the Stake.us website “Predating consumers” and putting them at “significant risk of gambling addiction.”
Stake.us is a sweepstakes casino that launched in 2022 after sportsbook and online casino Stake.com was banned from operating across the United States. It allows users to stake virtual currencies (called Stake Cash and coins) instead of real money. And Stake.us. The company has been banned in several states including California, Montana, Idaho, Washington, New Jersey, and Connecticut, but continues to operate legally in Virginia.
Two plaintiffs claim they were “influenced to participate” after being exposed to Stake’s “predatory gambling environment.” Saw Drake advertising the site.
“Plaintiffs were harmed by the false marketing manipulation and abusive conduct of Defendants Drake, Ross and Nguyen who participated in Stake’s marketing,” the complaint reads. “Through these and other promotions, Stake bombarded consumers with ads on social media platforms that portrayed its games as safe, legal, and fun.
“But these casino games are illegal in Virginia and across the United States, and are causing harm to consumers across the commonwealth who are losing real money while chasing gambling wins on the Stake platform,” it added.
Representatives for Drake declined to comment, and representatives for Nyugen could not be reached. independent Representatives for Ross have been contacted for comment.
The documents also allege that the trio then used the money they earned from Stake.us to “generate fraudulent music streams for Drake; fabricate popularity; disparage competitors and label executives; distort recommendation algorithms; and allocate financing for all of the above while concealing the flow of funds.”
It claims that public posts, chat logs and leaked communications show evidence that Nguyen worked with Drake and Rose to “directly process funds through multiple payment platforms, orchestrating narrative proliferation and amplification.”
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“At the core of the scheme, Drake acted directly and through the actions of willing and knowledgeable co-conspirators to deploy automated bots and streaming farms to artificially increase plays of his music on major platforms such as Spotify,” the report states. Echoing similar claims made by rapper RBX in his recent lawsuit against Spotify.
“Such manipulative behavior undermines the integrity of the curated experience, thereby silencing authentic artists and narrowing consumer access to legitimate content.”
The lawsuit seeks to represent other Virginia residents who lost one or more bets using Stake Cash within the past three years. The plaintiff asked for a jury trial and damages.