The ever-controversial figure in the music industry, Kanye West, has found himself in legal troubles again as the Donna Summer estate is suing the rapper and Ty Dolla $ign over an unauthorized interpolation of one of her songs.
Summer’s estate accused the two artists, who released their chart-topping Vultures 1 album earlier this month, of “shamelessly” using the late singer’s 1977 hit “I Feel Love” without permission in the rapper’s song “Good (Don’t Die).”
The lawsuit filed by the estate claimed that Kanye used an unauthorized soundalike of the disco classic despite being turned down when he previously asked for permission.
“Summer’s estate … wanted no association with West’s controversial history and specifically rejected West’s proposed use,” her attorneys wrote in a complaint filed in Los Angeles federal court. “In the face of this rejection, defendants arrogantly and unilaterally decided they would simply steal ‘I Feel Love’ and use it without permission.”
Lawyers allege that Kanye West's use of the song was a “blatant rip-off”
Image credits: Kanye West
The attorneys allege that Kanye re-recorded key portions of the song “almost verbatim” and used it as the hook for his own track. It was a “blatant rip-off” as fans “instantly recognized” the similarity, the attorneys noted.
“This lawsuit is about more than Defendants’ mere failure to pay the appropriate licensing fee for using another’s musical property,” the lawyers said. “It is also about the rights of artists to decide how their works are used and presented to the public, and the need to prevent anyone from simply stealing creative works when they cannot secure the right to use them legally.”
The lawsuit is about protecting "Donna Summer’s own musical legacy," lawyers said
It was also "about protecting Donna Summer’s own musical legacy and one of popular music's most influential and ground-breaking songs,” they wrote in the lawsuit.
Donna, the Queen of Disco, died at the age of 63 from lung cancer in 2012. Her husband, Bruce Sudano, who is listed as the lead plaintiff in the suit, posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, about Kanye using his late wife’s song without permission.
Kanye “changed the words, had someone re sing it, or used AI, but it’s I Feel Love… copyright infringement!!!” Bruce Sudano said
Following the estate’s outcry about the issue earlier this month, the song “Good (Don’t Die)” was taken down from streaming platforms and appears to be removed from digital versions of the Vultures 1 album. However, the estate insists on legal action being taken against Kanye and Ty, saying the damage has already been done.