Why Donna Summer’s Estate Is Going After Kanye West

MIAMI, FL - DECEMBER 05: Kanye West speaks at Surface Magazine's DesignDialogues No. 6 With Hans Ulrich Obrist, Kanye West And Jacques Herzog at Moore Building on December 5, 2013 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for Surface Magazine)

Donna Summer's estate is the latest entity to come for Kanye West over the rapper's unauthorized use of someone else's music—a seemingly frequent problem for Ye, of late.

According to new court documents obtained by People, the estate has filed suit against West and his Vultures 1 collaborator Ty Dolla $ign for interpolating her classic disco track "I Feel Love" in their song "Good (Don't Die)"—which clearly features someone singing changed lyrics to the original's melody—not only without their permission but against their wishes.

The copyright infringement suit was filed in California federal court on Feb. 27, with Summer's husband, Bruce Sudano, cited as the lead plaintiff. They seek $150,000 for each act of infringement, though it's not clear how many acts of infringement they're claiming.

Summer's estate claims that the musical duo "shamelessly used instantly recognizable portions of Summer’s hit song" even though they "explicitly denied" permission to do so after multiple requests, both in writing and over the phone. The filing also alleges that the duo completed the song before seeking permission, as an entity known as "Alien Music," acting on West's behalf, asked "for expedited review" because the final song was set for release less than a month later, which suggested that they had "already completed and readied their song for release without obtaining permission..."

The estate added that the pair "arrogantly and unilaterally decided they would simply steal" the song after permission was denied because the estate "wanted no association with West's controversial history."

More than honing in on the "Defendants' mere failure to pay the appropriate licensing fee," the estate is fighting to "protect" Summer's "musical legacy."

Sudano called out the theft on Feb. 10, taking to Twitter to confirm that he had rejected West's request to use the song and accusing him of copyright infringement.

Ozzy Osbourne recently issued a scathing message to the rapper for a similar issue, claiming on Feb. 9 that West had also sought permission to sample a live recording of Black Sabbath's "War Pig," which Osbourne said was denied because "he is an antisemite and has caused untold heartache to many." But "he went ahead and used the sample anyway."

At this time, "Good (Don't Die)" is unavailable to stream on Spotify, assumedly due to its part in the pending litigation.

Next: Kanye West's Wife Bianca Censori Nearly Bares It All in Ultra-Revealing Sheer Tights