There’s about to be a big mess going on over at Def Jam, considering a post that has popped up on publisher, Numero Uno Group’s blog, citing that Jay-Z and Kanye West, who as a unite, call themselves ‘The Throne,’ are guilty of copyright infringement on their joint venture, Watch the Throne.
Apparently, R&B/soul singer Syl Johnson (who also father of singer/songwriter Syleena Johnson) is considering a lawsuit against the two for an uncleared sample of one of his songs on their album. A sample of Johnson’s 1967 song “Different Strokes,” which appears on the track “The Joy,” was allegedly never properly cleared.
According to the publisher’s blog, Kanye originally used the sample on during his G.O.O.D. Friday promotion, where he released a new track every Friday, leading up to his My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy album. The track was supposedly supposed to appear on a deluxe edition of West’s album, but that never came to pass:
“After a little negotiating, we came to a price and a verbal agreement (one that is completely standard). Paperwork to confirm all of this was to arrive for counter signature. Weeks passed. Then months. No deluxe version appeared in the market place, and our emails and phone calls to Def Jam’s business affairs department went unanswered. We spent the better part of five months trying to get paid, and finally handed it to our lawyer who recommended not pursuing legal action as the song wasn’t actually being sold.
MTV announced today that Beyoncé will take the stage at this year’s VMA’s. It’s no surprised, either, considering that the international sensation has been nominated for “Best Female Video,” “Best Choreography” and “Best Cinematography.”


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