People reported that Kanye West and Ty Dolla $ign has settled the copyright infringement lawsuit that the Donna Summer estate filed against him and Ty Dolla $ign over the unauthorized interpolation on their recent Vultures 1 album.
Despite the estate's disapproval, West and Ty Dolla $ign used "I Feel Love" in one of their songs in Vultures 1.
According to the documents obtained by the publication, both West and Summer's legal camps had "entered into a settlement agreement that is a full and final settlement of all of the claims in the action." They have also decided to foot their own legal bills following the dispute.
Through their lawyer, Larry Stein, the Donna Summer estate told Billboard that the final agreement prohibits West from using any of the late singer's material in the future.
"We did not license the song," Stein added. "As part of the settlement, they have agreed not to distribute or otherwise use the song. So we got what we wanted."
In the February 2024 complaint, West and Dolla $ign initially asked for permission to use some parts of "I Feel Love" on their song "Good (Don't Die)." However, they were explicitly denied.
Despite being denied, the two went on to use the song, at least the lyrics. They featured a female voice singing altered lyrics from the song's melody.
Bruce Sudano, Donna Summer's husband, has publicly denounced the unlawful use of West and Dolla $ ign's use of the song.
"@kanyewest asked permission to use Donna Summer's song I Feel Love, he was denied... he changed the words, had someone re sing it or used AI but it's I Feel Love... copyright infringement!!!" he wrote on X, formerly Twitter. The song has since been removed (and returned, and removed again) on social media platforms.
According to the lawsuit, Donna Summer's estate rejected Kanye West's request because of his "controversial history."
West sought the copyright rights through an entity called Alien Music. Summer's estate denied the request, but he persevered and asked Universal Music Enterprises, but was still denied usage.
Aside from Summer, West and Dolla $ign also allegedly infringed on one of Ozzy Osbourne's songs.
In an explosive post, Black Sabbath vocalist Osbourne slammed West for using "Iron Man."
Like Summer, Osbourne denied West the right to use the song because of his checkered history, specifically his antisemitic stance.
Despite the controversy, "Vultures 1" debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart and even spent a second week at the summit.
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