Kanye West has settled with Donna Summer’s estate over allegations that he illegally used her song ‘I Feel Love’ on his ‘Vultures 1’ album. Summer’s husband, Bruce Sudano, filed a copyright infringement lawsuit in February 2024 stating that the two rappers did not have permission to sample the 1977 disco hit on their collaborative album. The lawsuit alleged that representatives for West had asked for permission to use the sample on his track ‘Good (Don’t Die)’ but were turned down by the late singer’s estate. Then, the two rappers reportedly approached Summer’s record label, Universal Music Enterprises, in a bid to be granted permission, but were denied once again. From there, they allegedly included re-recorded parts of the hit that were “instantly recognizable” on the ‘Vultures 1’ cut. ‘Good (Don’t Die)’ was subsequently removed from streaming services.
Although the documents did not reveal the details of the settlement, it was reported that the case has been dismissed with prejudice. All parties are yet to comment on the outcome. This was not the only infringement claim that arose following the release of ‘Vultures 1’. In December 2024, it was claimed that West had used a Backstreet Boys sample on a ‘Vultures’ track called ‘Everybody.’ The song was reportedly not cleared, but it didn’t end up featuring on ‘Vultures 1.’
Furthermore, Ozzy Osbourne hit out at West over an alleged unauthorized sample of Black Sabbath’s ‘Iron Man’ on the cut ‘Carnival.’ The Sabbath sample was subsequently removed, and replaced with a part from West’s song ‘Hell Of A Life,’ which features a legally-cleared sample of ‘Iron Man’
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