R&B Veteran Robert Poindexter Of The Persuaders Is Suing Kanye West and Bow Wow Over Unpaid Samples [Video]
Old School R&B crooner Robert Poindexter of The Persuaders has drawn his line in the dirt and is coming after Bow Wow, Kanye West and Cash Money Records for unpaid sample royalties.
Poindexter filed a lawsuit and his gripes stem from Bow Wow sampling his music on the Greenlight 3 mixtape which was not sold for commercial use.
In a Youtube clip, Robert Poindexter says,
“They using my song ‘Love Is Gonna Pack Up’ without permission… Your artist Bow Wow sampled “Love Is Gonna Pack Up” in his recording ‘Still Ballin’ on his album (mixtape) Green Light 3. Mixtapes are now a big business. It’s not how it used to be when you used it for your personal use or sell a few copies out of the trunk of your car. But now mixtapes are a big part of the music business. You trying to say it’s a free mixtape and you not making any money off of it.
Hey you not a charity organization. You using this song here to advertise and sell all of your other albums and a whole lot of other commercial ventures. You can’t do that and get away with it. You can go to jail for it under the 1997 NET (No Electronic Theft) Act.
In rap ya’ll started off talking about the man and the system and telling people to watch out for them and meanwhile you got your hand in my pocket taking everything that I got. You making money… cash money… and you just can’t take nobody’s property. How would you like for me to steal your car, take it away from you and give it away for free… so it’s not a crime (because you didn’t make any money).”
One thing to keep in mind though is Bow Wow probably had no idea who was sampled for the beat and probably thought the track was hot and just rocked over it. That lawsuit, if it has any merit, may also need to include the producer of the song.
These mixtape productions are going to become heavy scrutinized over the next few years as they are being used to generate a lot of income. Many MCs have been called out for being slick and recording tracks off a producer’s beat CD which he was shopping and release or “leak” the song and claim the “It was free” card since the product itself wasn’t sold.
The problem with that is you didn’t purchase the track and the producer can no longer sell it to another artist. Now the artist is still performing the song at shows and it has become a crowd favorite so basically you are getting paid “tax free.”
In regards to The Persuaders lawsuit, Bow Wow wasn’t the only artist Robert Poindexter called out though as he claims he’s had to fight to get his money from several other MCs who eventually paid up including Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Styles P and Bizzy Bone. He also seems still salty that his name was left off the production credits on the albums as well which prompted many of the lawsuits.
Poindexter’s biggest alleged royalty dodger is Kanye West. He added,
“Yo 50, you stepped up to the plate and settled the matter with me. You came up with something that we could live with but Kanye…man I don’t know where you’re coming from. You out here running man. I’ve had the United States Marshall try to serve you and talked to your lawyers. Why you scared of me Kanye. I’ll meet you in the ring anytime and the ring is the United States District Court.
You doing good man. Kanye out here trying to rip me off but I’ma catch up with you Kanye. Why don’t ya’ll step up to the plate and do what’s right. I’m not just speaking for myself but I’m speaking up for all the veteran R&B singers and writers.”
Pops Poindexter seems heated with Kanye and looks like he’d put that old man grip on the Chi-town MC if he ever gets his hands on him.
I also got to point out that Robert Poindexter is trying to sell his new album at the end of the clip so he probably does need the paper if he’s still trying to record and make music for a living at his age.
Watch the video below and let us know what you think of the lawsuit and allegations and where do you sit with mixtape sampling in general.
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