Drake, Adin Ross and Stake named in new civil RICO class action lawsuit

The class action lawsuit alleging illegal gambling promotion and artificial music streaming

Drake, online streamer Adin Ross and gambling platform Stake have been named as defendants in a new civil RICO class action lawsuit filed in the United States, marking the third legal action of its kind involving the same parties.

The lawsuit, reported on January 1, 2026, alleges that Drake, Ross, Stake and an additional individual, George Nguyen, used Stake’s tipping feature to exchange money among themselves. According to the filing, the funds were allegedly used to artificially boost Drake’s music streams across major digital platforms.

“In addition, through Stake’s Tipping function, Defendants have financed their combined artificial streaming (“botting”) 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,” two plaintiffs reportedly alleged in the complaint.

The lawsuit further claims that Drake knowingly allowed encrypted transfers to be disguised as giveaways that were largely unavailable to the general public. It also references an alleged $100,000 tip transfer between Ross and Drake in 2023. Drake’s 2024 “Drizzmas” livestream with Ross is cited as an example of the defendants allegedly circulating tips to support botting and paid engagement activity.

In addition, the filing reportedly mentions a $220,000 car that Stake allegedly gifted to Ross days before the lawsuit was submitted on New Year’s Eve.

The case was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia and seeks $5 million in damages. The plaintiffs are identified as LaShawnna Ridley and Tiffany Hines, described in the filing as Stake.us users within the United States.

Drake faced similar lawsuits in New Mexico and Missouri last year. The new filing follows a recent livestream in which the artist reportedly gave away a portion of his Stake earnings