KBrandon Cooper and Timothy Valentine, who filed the lawsuit in October 2021, will continue the case against Brown and Sony Music Entertainment despite removing Drake's name as one of the defendants.
- Apr 28, 2022
AceShowbiz - Drake can now breathe a sigh of relief. The Canadian superstar reportedly has been dismissed from a copyright infringement lawsuit over his collaboration with Chris Brown, "No Guidance".
KBrandon Cooper and Timothy Valentine, known as Drum'n Skillz, filed the lawsuit in October 2021. They previously named Drake and Brown as defendants. However, the plaintiffs decided to remove the 'Laugh Now Cry Later' rapper's name on Tuesday, April 26.
It was unclear why Cooper and Valentine made the decision. The two, however, will still continue the case against the RnB singer and Sony Music Entertainment.
In the lawsuit, Cooper and Valentine accused Brown and Drake of hijacking their song, "I Love Your Dress", which arrived three years before the 2019 hit. Among the elements that the A-list artists were accused of stealing is the phrase "you got it." They also alleged that "an analysis of the beat, lyrics, hook and rhythmic structure demonstrates that 'No Guidance' was copied or, at the very least, principally derived from 'I Love Your Dress'."
Brown and Drake denied the allegations. Their attorney, James G. Sammataro, believes the phrase is too common in the English language. "Plaintiffs' suit is premised upon the alleged similarity [to a] wholly generic lyrical phrase," he stated, according to Billboard. "No one, including plaintiffs, can own or monopolize the non-copyrightable phrase 'you got it,' and it should come as no surprise that this phrase appears in countless other works."
"The Court can hear for itself that the total concept and feel of the songs is vastly different. The plaintiffs' song is a slow, R&B love ballad about the writer's wife featuring one vocalist and relatively few lyrics In sharp contrast," he continued. " 'No Guidance' is a faster, longer, and sexually explicit rap and R&B song about a new romantic interest."
