Nelly Sued By St. Lunatics For Copyright Infringement Over ‘Country Grammar’ Album
Nelly has been hit with a copyright infrignement lawsuit alleging that he never properly credited his St. Lunatics groupmates for their contributions to his debut album Country Grammar.
According to documents obtained by Variety, St. Lunatics members Ali Jones (Ali), Torhi Harper (Murphy Lee), Robert Kyjuan (Kyjuan), and Lavell Webb (City Spud) claim that Nelly repeatedly vowed to credit and compensate the group for their work, a promise that never materialized.
The St. Lunatics alleged that after Nelly and the group signed separate record deals with Universal Music Group, the members assisted Nelly in the creation of eight songs on Country Grammar, which they never received compensation for.
The St. Lunatics’ concerns over their publishing and writing credits rose amid a lawsuit filed against Nelly by another alleged former collaborator over his work with the Grammy Award winning hitmaker.
In 2020, Willie Woods Jr. filed a lawsuit regarding unpaid royalties for his contributions to Nelly’s 2000 single “Ride Wit Me,” which peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, his highest-charting single at the time of its release.
The songs the St. Lunatics claim they helped write on Country Grammar include the hit singles “Batter Up,” “Steal the Show,” and the album’s title track, “Country Grammar,” the last of which rose to No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Per Billboard, the St. Lunatics’ decision to file a copyright infringement lawsuit, as opposed to a copyright ownership suit, is due to the latter having a statue of limitations of three years.
According to the outlet, Nelly’s legal represenatives are likely to argue that the suit falls under copyright ownership and not infringement, thus voiding the group’s claims to compensation.
Released in 2000, Country Grammar peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for five consecutive weeks and has been certified diamond by the RIAA for shipment of 10 million copies in the U.S.
Nelly and his legal team have yet to release a statement regarding the St. Lunatics’ pending lawsuit.
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