Last yr, Tracy Chapman sued Nicki Minaj for copyright infringement, claiming that Nicki’s unreleased observe “Sorry”—which interpolates Chapman’s 1988 observe “Baby Can I Hold You”—used her music with out permission. Nicki has now filed her first formal response to the lawsuit, The Blast stories and Pitchfork can affirm.
In the paperwork, filed in a California federal court docket on February 22 and obtained by Pitchfork, Nicki denies committing copyright infringement. She additionally argues that her interpolation is protected by the doctrine of fair use. In addition, Nicki claims, Chapman “has not correctly registered her declare to the copyright within the Composition [“Baby Can I Hold You”],” which means that Chapman “is not the owner of the copyright in issue and therefore lacks standing to bring the claims alleged in the Complaint.” Nicki additionally argues that Chapman is just not entitled to damages.
Funkmaster Flex shared Nicki Minaj’s “Sorry” in August 2018. It has since been eliminated, although audio rips nonetheless exist. Through her swimsuit, Tracy Chapman is looking for damages and likewise an order to forestall Nicki and her workforce from releasing “Sorry.”
Prior to the Flex’s “Sorry” premiere, Nicki publicly asked Tracy Chapman to clear a pattern shortly earlier than the discharge of her album Queen. According to Chapman’s swimsuit, Nicki’s workforce made “multiple requests” to license “Baby Can I Hold You” and was denied. In her response, Nicki “admits that her representatives made a number of requests for permission to launch a musical interpolation that used music and lyrics from [“Baby Can I Hold You”].”
Read “Why Tracy Chapman Would Probably Win Her Lawsuit Against Nicki Minaj” on the Pitch.
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