Mary J. Blige’s “Real Love” Slammed With Copyright Infringement Lawsuit
Universal Music Group (UMG) has been hit with a copyright infringement lawsuit over Mary J. Blige’s 1992 classic, “Real Love.” Blige was not named in the lawsuit nor was she accused of any wrongdoing.
In the lawsuit filed by Tuff City Records in Manhattan federal court on Thursday (April 4), it’s been alleged that “Real Love” features an unlicensed sample of The Honey Dippers’ 1973 hit, “Impeach the President,” which had been sampled before in several Hip-Hop and R&B records, including J. Cole’s “Wet Dreamz,” Nas’ “I Can,” LL Cool J’s “Around The Way Girl,” and most recently, Doja Cat’s “Can’t Wait.”
Hillel Parness, an attorney representing the label, said in the complaint that they have “advised defendant repeatedly of the presence of the uncleared sample” in Blige’s “Real Love,” but UMG has not rectified the matter.
Parness added, “Defendant has repeatedly refused to engage plaintiff in substantive negotiations to rectify the foregoing, let alone agreed to compensate Plaintiff for the past infringement or on an ongoing basis.”
However, Tuff City claims that UMG Recordings—a UMG subsidiary and owner of the “Real Love” master—reached an agreement regarding the uncleared sample, but UMG has not.
Over the past 15 years, Tuff City has sued regarding uncleared samples or interpolations in songs from JAY-Z to Frank Ocean and more. In 2014, a judge dismissed their case regarding JAY-Z’s “Run This Town” after determining that the sample in question was “barely perceptible.” In 2018, Tuff City was ordered to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees to the Beastie Boys, who felt it was a case “clearly without merit.”
Tuff City first sued over an improper usage of “Impeach the President” back in 1991, claiming Marley Marl had illegally sampled the record on LL Cool J’s “Around The Way Girl” and “Six Minutes of Pleasure.”
It set precedence in Hip-Hop regarding sampling because up until then, rap artists rarely sought out proper licensing for their recordings. The case was later settled on confidential terms.
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