A copyright infringement lawsuit filed against the artist formerly known as Kanye West, Ye, has been settled by the recording artists who accused him of sampling one of their songs for use in his 2024 project, Vultures 1.
According to Hot 97, the song “Fuk Sumn” that appeared on a collaborative album that Ye did with Ty Dolla $ign, had allegedly unlawfully sampled a song, “Drink a Yak (Part 2)” by Criminal Manne (Vanda Watkins), DJ Squeeky
(Hayward Ivy), and Kilo G (Robert L. Johnson Jr.). The “Drink a Yak (Part 2)” artists accused the music producer of failing to obtain permission to use the song, but have recently settled the dispute with Ye.Before taking the producer to court, a West representative had reportedly tried to clear the sample but did not follow up, as the song was used without an agreement in place.
“After
numerous unsuccessful attempts at resolving this matter directly with the responsible parties, plaintiffs have been left with no other method of recourse than to bring this cause of action,” attorneys for the producers wrote.On March 18, the agreement was in place as both sides stated that they had “reached a settlement agreement in principle resolving all claims between them.” There was no information regarding the terms and payout, if any.
The news comes on the heels of a recent announcement that Ye is releasing his latest project, BULLY. After it was reported that the album would be out on March 20, recent postings have displayed a March 27 release date. It’s been common for Ye to announce release dates and then change them, as he has with his last few albums. It has been reported that the album will navigate themes of “remorse, memory, ego, faith, and consequence.”
This upcoming release will be the controversial artist’s 12th studio album.
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