Kanye West has lost a copyright infringement trial over the use of an uncleared sample on a version of ‘Hurricane’.
A group of four musicians – Khalil Abdul Rahman, Sam Barsh, Dan Seeff and Josh Mease – had filed a suit against Ye, claiming that a live performance of the song had incorporated an unauthorised sample of their track ‘MSD PT2’.
‘Hurricane’ went on to be released on Ye’s 2021 album ‘Donda’, but the suit related to an earlier version of the track that the rapper performed live at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia in July 2021.
Now, a federal jury in Los Angeles has unanimously decided that Ye did infringe the copyright of ‘MSD PT2’, with the rapper being personally liable for $176,153 (£130,172), and his company Yeezy LLC liable for the same amount. Ye’s retail merchandising companies Yeezy Supply and Mascotte Holdings have also been found liable for over $40,000 each.
The four musicians’ legal representatives Britton Monts said: “It’s a victory for working artists, who typically lack the resources to go against someone like Ye, a megastar and celebrity. The underdogs got their day in court.”
A Yeezy spokesperson said: “This is a failed shakedown. Six months ago, they wanted $30million out of Ye. The moral of the story? There is a cost attached to thinking you can take advantage of Ye.”
The musicians claimed that the ‘MSD PT2’ recording was shared with Ye’s team during preliminary discussions, and they said there was an expectation that they would be “compensated fairly” for any commercial use.
The sample did not make the final album version, but they claim that the public performance itself counted as infringement. Irene Lee, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, said an expert analysis found that the performance generated $5.5million (£4.06million) for Ye through ticket sales, merchandise, a streaming deal with Apple, and a deal with Gap for the jacket Ye wore on stage during the show.
Ye’s lawyer Eduardo Martorell countered that the rapper’s fame and accomplishments drove those revenue drivers, “not a one-minute and one-second instrumental”, and he told the jury: “We don’t think we should be here. This lawsuit should never have been filed. The artists led my client to believe he had permission to use their music every step of the way.”
Ye himself testified during the trial, claiming that “a lot of people try to take advantage of me”, and telling the jury that “we went through the normal process” to have the samples cleared.
The final version of ‘Hurricane’ released on ‘Donda’ featured The Weeknd and Lil Baby, and featured additional vocals from the Sunday Service Choir and KayCyy. It went on to win Best Melodic Rap Performance at the 2022 Grammys.
NME reviewed ’Donda’ on its release in 2021, awarding it three stars and writing: “While ‘DONDA’ certainly isn’t a rushed job, it could have benefitted from West spending a little less time on it and learning when to let things go. Nobody needs all 27 of these tracks, but dig deep into its contents and you’ll find enough gems to make his 10th album worth your time.”
Ye released new album ’Bully’ in March and has attempted to launch a world tour, but many shows have been cancelled – in the UK, Switzerland, Poland and France – due to the rapper’s past anti-Semitic remarks.