AI Artist Xania Monet, Diddy Sentencing Looms, Ticketmaster Lawsuit & More Music Law News

THE BIG STORY: If you needed different wide motion that artificial quality is seeping into each facet of American taste life, here’s one: An AI creator conscionable signed a grounds deal, the hallowed milestone of occurrence for immoderate emerging musician.

As archetypal reported by Billboard past week, Xania Monet — the avatar of a pistillate named Telisha Jones who writes her ain lyrics but uses Suno to make the euphony — inked a grounds contract worthy millions. The woody has rapidly go the speech of the industry, including from stars who person spoken out, including Kehlani, who said: “I don’t respect it.”

But…what precisely is simply a statement buying here? It remains unclear the grade to which you tin unafraid intelligence spot rights to AI-generated songs, raising hurdles for monetizing them. And platforms similar Suno are inactive facing trillion-dollar infringement lawsuits that fundamentally assertion the exertion itself is illegal. For more, go work our afloat story.

Other apical stories this week…

BLIGE CASE TOSSED – A national justice dismissed a lawsuit against Universal Music Group claiming Mary J. Blige’s enduring 1992 deed “Real Love” infringed the oft-sampled 1973 funk opus “Impeach the President” by the Honey Drippers, which has been utilized by Run-DMC, Dr. Dre, Doja Cat and galore others implicit the years. The justice said the 2 songs were truthful antithetic that cipher would perceive the earlier song: “The songs bash not dependable the same.”

DIDDY SENTENCING – Attorneys for Sean “Diddy” Combs urged a national judge to condemnation him to conscionable 14 months successful situation connected his prostitution convictions, asking him to cull the benignant of “draconian” punishment sought by prosecutors. Because the prima has already served 13 months successful jailhouse since helium was arrested, that condemnation would spot him released astir immediately: “It is clip for Mr. Combs to spell home.”

LETTERS OF SUPPORT – To assistance marque that argument, Diddy’s lawyers filed dozens of letters from supporters, pleading with the justice to amusement lenience toward the rapper erstwhile helium sentences him adjacent month. They came from Diddy’s parent and kids, from ex-girlfriend Yung Miami and from an enforcement astatine hip-hop statement Quality Control Music — among galore others.

SUNO SUIT 2.0 – Separate from the Xania Monet situation, the large grounds labels filed an amended version of their copyright suit against the AI euphony firm, adding caller allegations that the institution illegally “stream-ripped” songs from YouTube to bid its models. That’s a hugely important caller claim: In a abstracted specified suit against Anthropic, a national justice ruled this summertime that AI grooming itself is apt a ineligible “fair use” but that utilizing pirated works to bash it could pb to galore billions successful imaginable damages.

FTC, YEAH YOU KNOW ME – The Federal Trade Commission filed a lawsuit against Live Nation and Ticketmaster accusing the performance giants of advertizing misleading summons prices and allowing scalpers to bargain up tickets and resell them astatine inflated prices. The lawsuit came months aft the bureau sued a summons broker that allegedly utilized thousands of fake Ticketmaster accounts to bargain and resell tickets to Taylor Swift concerts and different events — and 2 years aft Live Nation was deed with a sweeping monopoly suit by the U.S. Department of Justice.

HYPE VID SETTLEMENT – Mike Tyson settled a lawsuit claiming helium illegally utilized the Jay-Z, DMX and Ja Rule opus “Murdergram” successful an Instagram video promoting his boxing lucifer against Jake Paul. The lawsuit was filed by Ty Fyffe, a shaper and co-writer of the 1998 way who claimed that Tyson had willful...