Roc Nation in Legal Trouble After Producer Claims Beats Were Stolen

May 3, 2023 Pharaoh

Houston-based producer, Kerry D. Brown of Krushial K. Productions, filed a lawsuit against Jay-Z’s Roc Nation on May 1, alleging copyright infringement.

According to court documents sourced by AllHipHop, the Roc Nation entertainment company is being sued for stealing beats and tracks that were used in GloRilla’s “F.N.F. (Let’s Go)” and A$AP Ferg’s “Plain Jane.”

The lawsuit reads: “Within 21 days after this summons on you…you must serve on the plaintiff an answer to the attached complaint or a motion under Rule 12 or the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The answer or motion must be served on the plaintiff or plaintiff’s attorney.”

The documents claim Roc Nation received access to the tracks through the company’s vice president, Lenny Santiago, to whom Brown allegedly gave copyrighted music samples in hopes of building a working relationship. According to Brown, two instrumentals, “You Don’t Know Nothing About Me” and “AUDIOBOX,” were used for GloRilla’s and A$AP Ferg’s hits.

Defendants in the lawssuit include Roc Nation, Lenny Santiago, Sony Music Entertainment Digital L.L.C and Blac Noize Recordings L.L.C.

Brown said none of the parties ever obtained a Notice of Intent to Use the copyrighted music. Spotify was the only company to send a Notice of Intent to Use the music, and he never received royalties for either track.

Reportedly, “Plain Jane” became Ferg’s most successful single after its release in 2017. GloRilla’s “F.N.F. (Let’s Go)” certified gold record brought her significant publicity, including honors such as Best New Hip-Hop Artist at the BET Hip Hop Awards, an iHeartRadio Music award, and a nomination for Best Rap Performance at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards.

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