Thursday, March 28, 2024

Wale’s 2013 Song ‘Bad’ at Center of Royalties Dispute

Wale at Spotify's RapCaviar Live at The Tabernacle on August 12, 2017 in Atlanta, Georgia.
Wale at Spotify’s RapCaviar Live at The Tabernacle on August 12, 2017 in Atlanta, Georgia.

*Wale’s 2013 song “Bad” has not been good to him for the past four years, as the track has been the focus of an ongoing copyright dispute.

Santrise Webb says she hasn’t been paid royalties she’s owed for the song, and a later remix of the track featuring Rihanna. She says she owns 20 percent of the copyright in the musical composition of the original and 10 percent in the remix, according to a complaint filed Wednesday in New York federal court.

According to the suit described in The Hollywood Reporter, featured singer Tiara Thomas in 2013 assigned some of her rights in the works to The Board Administration (TBA), along with 40 percent of the writer’s share of public performance royalties from BMI.

The next year, Webb sued to establish her ownership of TBA. That matter was settled and she retained half ownership in the company, and the court ordered that relevant royalties be split 50-50 moving forward.

Webb says she hasn’t been paid on “Bad” since then, despite multiple requests.

Webb is now suing Thomas and TNT Music for breach of contract, Sony/ATV for conversion and Warner Music, TNT Music, ASCAP and BMI for non-compliance with a court order.

Listen to/watch both the original and remix of Wale’s “Bad” below:

We Publish News 24/7. Don’t Miss A Story. Click HERE to SUBSCRIBE to Our Newsletter Now!

YOU MAY LIKE

SEARCH

- Advertisement -

TRENDING