Kanye West sued over sample on Donda 2’s 'Flowers'

Kanye West was sued on June 29 for copyright infringement over the Donda 2 track Flowers, Billboard reports and court documents confirm. Ultra International Music Publishing (UIMP) is suing West and the creators of the Stem Player, alleging that a repeated sample of Marshall Jefferson’s 1986 Chicago house song Move Your Body was unauthorized.

The lawsuit, filed in a New York federal court, claims that West acknowledged to Jefferson and UIMP that he sampled Move Your Body without permission and that the sample is “repeated at least 22 times.”

It continues: “Despite this acknowledgment, West has not ceased distribution of ‘Flowers.’ Defendants’ conduct is willful and deliberate. Defendants know and have been informed that they do not possess a license to utilize the Composition in the Unauthorized Work, and yet continue to willfully infringe in blatant disregard of UIMP’s rights of ownership.”

UIMP is seeking damages, profits, a cease in distribution, and a jury trial. Pitchfork has reached out to West’s representatives for comment.