The 'Berzerk' rapper is suing New Zealand's National party for allegedly using his song 'Lose Yourself' in an ad for their campaign without his permission.
- September 16, 2014
AceShowbiz -
Eminem has filed a lawsuit against New Zealand's National Party, saying that his song "Lose Yourself " has been used by the party in its campaign ad without his permission. On Tuesday, September 16 the Ministry of Justice confirmed that the lawsuit was filed in the High Court in Wellington.
"It is both disappointing and sadly ironic that the political party responsible for championing the rights of music publishers in New Zealand by the introduction of the three strikes copyright reforms should itself have so little regard for copyright," Eight Mile's Joel Martin said in a statement. The rapper is now seeking damages for copyright infringement against the party.
National Party, however, denied the allegations. "The National Party purchased the music in question from recognised production music supplier Beatbox, based in Australia and Singapore. The music was originally published by Spider Cues Music, a well-established Los Angeles-based provider of music to the film and entertainment industry," they said in a statement.
The party stopped using the track about two weeks ago, around the same time Em made a complaint. They added that the song had been licensed in Australia and New Zealand with no problems. "It appears though that the National Party is the only organisation that has used this material that is being legally targeted," they added. "The National Party will be defending this action vigorously. As the matter is now before the courts we will not be making any further public comment."
