Last week Rick Ross marked a key milestone in the longstanding suit that Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson has brought against Ross for his remix of “In Da Club.” The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York has ruled against 50 Cent’s appeal for the suit that started in 2015.
This is a key precedent marking case for all music creators, regardless of genre, because a victory for 50 Cent would’ve meant that free mixtapes and remixes would no longer be allowed for artists, unless they had the original composers permission regardless of ownership. 50 Cent’s final course of action would be having to take this to the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, DC.
Rick Ross is represented by the firm Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP, with Ross being represented by Firm partners Leron E. Rogers, Esq. & Jonathan D. Goins, Esq. and associate John T. Rose, Esq.. Both Leron E. Rogers, Esq. and John T. Rose, Esq. have recently made Billboard’s list of Top Music Lawyers for 2020.
Regarding this case, Leron, Jonathan and John state, “Today is a victory for talented artists, as well as those seeking to license the use of music. The Second Circuit’s opinion reaffirms the creativity of artists to freely express their performances in sampling or remixing of popular songs, while at the same time, still guaranteeing that those who seek to license such songs (from a publisher or copyright holder) may do so without necessarily having to separately obtain or contractually negotiate one’s right of publicity. Furthermore, Mr. Roberts’ remix of “In Da Club” was never about Mr. Jackson – but was simply one of many remixes on his mixtape album, which also featured songs by Adele, Nas, Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar, and Lil Wayne. Artists often perform lyrics in sampling or remixing songs of other artists, as it has long been a staple of hip-hop music.” The Court correctly recognized this cultural phenomenon noting that:
“In the hip-hop world, the mere use, without more, of a sample from a well-known song, without acknowledgement of the identity of the sampled well-known song, without acknowledgement of the identity of the sampled artists, does not communicate to the relevant audience that the sampled artists has endorsed or sponsored the sampling artist’s work.”
Rick Ross’ attorneys further state, “The “In Da Club” song has been remixed or sampled countless times, even by Beyonce and P-Diddy, without any lawsuit initiated by Mr. Jackson. So it is interesting – if not for personal animosity – that Mr. Jackson singled out Mr. Roberts for doing the same. Mr. Jackson’s attempt to usurp the music clearance process was rejected by the lower court, and again now on appeal. His complaint that Mr. Roberts used “his” “In Da Club” song without permission was misguided: it isn’t his song. The song is owned as a copyright by Shady/Aftermath – not Mr. Jackson. Mr. Roberts’ use of “In Da Club” was a reproduction of a copyrighted work, not otherwise owned by Mr. Jackson. Lastly, Mr. Roberts’s use of “In Da Club,” as the Court properly ruled, “was neither misleading nor did it imply that Jackson had endorsed Roberts, his mixtape, or his commercial album.”
Mr. Rogers serves as vice-chair of Lewis Brisbois’ Entertainment, Media & Sports Practice and is a member of its Business Practices and Complex Business & Commercial Litigation Practice. He represents institutional and individual clients in a wide variety of commercial litigation proceedings, business and commercial transactions, entertainment, technology, and media.
Mr. Goins is a Partner and Co-Chair of Lewis Brisbois’ Intellectual Property & Technology Group. He handles intellectual property matters involving trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, right of publicity and related business torts for a wide range of corporations and high-profile clientele. He has been consistently ranked in peer-recognitions and publications for his expertise in intellectual property.
Mr. Rose is a member of Lewis Brisbois’ Corporate, Entertainment, Media & Sports and Complex Business & Commercial Litigation Practices. He represents a variety of high-profile clients, including award-winning creatives, multi-platinum recording artists and producers, and celebrity entertainers.
Congrats to our good friend John T. Rose on the big win!
If you missed it go to our Twitch and rewatch What A Year To Be Alive, a charity stream organized and hosted by John T. Rose. Esq.