(AllHipHop News) Notorious B.I.G. estate officials have beaten a copyright infringement lawsuit relating to a single released back in 1993.
Poet Abiodun Oyewole, also known as Tunes by Dune, filed suit against executors in 2016, claiming he wrote a 1968 musical compilation titled “When the Revolution Comes,” which was reportedly sampled in the late rapper’s#### “Party and Bulls##t.”
In his original legal filing, Oyewole claimed he had planned to take Biggie, real name Christopher Wallace, to court before he was murdered in 1997, but he subsequently didn’t feel comfortable going after the tragic star’s widow, Faith Evans, or his mother Voletta Wallace.
However, the plaintiff alleges he finally decided to take action after the music was further licensed without his permission and used on more recent songs, like Rita Ora’s 2012 single “How We Do (Party).”
Ora was included as one of many defendants in the $24 million lawsuit, as were officials at her then-label, Jay-Z’s Roc Nation, but last week Oyewole’s whole case was dismissed.
According to paperwork, U.S. District Judge Alison J. Nathan shut down the suit for a number of reasons, including failure to state a claim, and insufficient service of process, after it was revealed some of the defendants had never received notice of the legal action.
The judge also cited protections under America’s Fair Use doctrine, which allows limited use of copyrighted material without prior authorization from the copyright holder, declaring Notorious B.I.G.’s “Party and Bulls##t” and Ora’s “How We Do (Party)” do not infringe on Oyewole’s copyright.
Attorneys for Biggie’s estate celebrated the news in a statement released on the 21st anniversary of his death.
“This is a well-earned victory for the Estate, and it seems like a message from Christopher to receive it on the anniversary of his passing,” stated estate attorney Julian Petty.
