Some of hip-hop’s biggest names found themselves at the center of a new legal dispute. A copyright lawsuit alleged that two hit songs were borrowed from a decades-old funk track without permission. The case targeted Snoop Dogg, Sean “Diddy” Combs, the estate of The Notorious B.I.G., and several other artists and companies connected to the recordings.
The lawsuit focused on two charting songs from the early 2000s that allegedly sampled a 1980 composition without authorization. The complaint also claimed the songwriters only discovered the alleged infringement in 2024, years after both tracks had achieved commercial success.
A copyright lawsuit alleges Snoop Dogg, Diddy and the estate of The Notorious B.I.G. used an unauthorized funk sample
Complex reported that composers David Bravo, 73, and Jean Albert Renaud, 84, filed the complaint, alleging they co-wrote and produced the 1980 song Skatin’, originally performed by Brazilian musician Eumir Deodato. According to the lawsuit, Angie Stone’s 2004 hit “I Wanna Thank Ya” and The Notorious B.I.G.‘s 2005 single “Nasty Girl” sampled the song’s musical foundation without permission.
The outlet reported that Bravo and Renaud claimed both songs used the “harmonic, rhythmic, and melodic” elements of Skatin’ to “serve as the complete musical backing track over which new vocal melodies and rap verses were composed.” The complaint included a report from musicologist and record producer Thomas Z. Shepard supporting those allegations.
The publication noted that “I Wanna Thank Ya,” featuring Snoop Dogg, reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Dance Club Songs chart in 2004. Meanwhile, “Nasty Girl,” released on Duets: The Final Chapter, featured Diddy and Nelly alongside posthumous vocals from The Notorious B.I.G. and peaked at No. 44 on the Billboard Hot 100.
According to the report, the list of defendants included Diddy, Snoop Dogg, Nelly, Jazze Pha, the estates of Angie Stone and The Notorious B.I.G., along with labels and music companies connected to the recordings. Bravo and Renaud also accused Sony Music Publishing of breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty, alleging the company failed to protect their copyright.
The lawsuit stated, “Sony Publishing deliberately turned a blind eye to the unauthorized use of Plaintiffs’ four-bar foundational backing track.” It continued, “This flagrant disparity highlights that Sony Publishing’s refusal to protect Plaintiffs’ copyright was not an administrative oversight, but a calculated decision to maximize the profits of its other lucrative clients at the direct expense of Plaintiffs.”
The report added that the composers claimed Sony previously told them Nasty Girl presented a “conflict of interest” because of the publisher’s existing relationships with several of the song’s writers. Representatives for the artists and entities named in the lawsuit had not publicly responded to the allegations at the time of publication.
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