Rapper Juice WRLD is the latest popular music artist to face an infringement lawsuit for allegedly copying an older song. In this case, it's the defunct pop punk band Yellowcard, whose former members have taken to the courts to try and secure $15 million in damages plus a "running royalty and/or ownership share" in Juice's song "Lucid Dreams." They claim it infringes on their 2006 song "Holly Wood Died."
As reported by Billboard, Yellowcard is looking for a piece of the "overwhelming success" that Juice WRLD has enjoyed, which they say is partly due to their song. They argue that the rapper must have heard and been influenced by their track, citing Neal Avron, the producer of their album Lights and Sounds, who also produced Fall Out Boy's 2005 album From Under the Cork Tree, a project Juice WRLD has openly admired.
The lawsuit presents a technical analysis of the similarities between "Lucid Dreams" and "Holly Wood Died," highlighting shared hooks, melodies, and other alleged parallels. According to the lawsuit, this leads to one conclusion: the high degree of objective similarity between the original work and the infringing work extends well beyond coincidence and could only reasonably be the result of an act of copying.
Lawsuits like this are becoming increasingly common in the music industry. High-profile artists such as Katy Perry and Pharrell Williams have faced similar legal challenges, being forced to pay other artists over popular songs. Yellowcard's attorney, Richard Busch, stated that filing the lawsuit was a last resort for the band, who had previously notified all parties involved and allowed them the opportunity to resolve the matter amicably. However, their notice was ignored, leaving them no choice but to proceed with legal action.
Time will tell if a jury agrees with Yellowcard's claims. If they do, Juice WRLD could find himself in a tough situation. A recent article in The Fader indicates that he is already sharing a portion of the song's royalties with songwriter Sting, whose song "Shape of My Heart" is sampled in "Lucid Dreams." Sting reportedly receives 85 percent of the songwriting royalties as it stands. If Yellowcard secures a piece of the remaining 15 percent, Juice WRLD may not see much revenue from the hit song.
