Several NBA Teams Sued for Using Rap Songs in Social Media Posts

July 23, 2024 656 37 4

Several NBA teams are being sued for using specific rap songs in social media posts without permission.

14 NBA Teams Face Litigation for Copyright Infringement

On July 18, Kobalt Music Publishing, Artist Publishing Group and others fired off multiple lawsuits in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York accusing 14 teams in the NBA of copyright infringement including the New York Knicks, Orlando Magic, Cleveland Cavaliers and Indiana Pacers. Other teams facing litigation are the Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves, Atlanta Hawks, Miami Heat, New Orleans Pelicans, Philadelphia 76ers, Phoenix Suns, Portland Trail Blazers, Sacramento Kings and San Antonio Spurs.

According to the suits, obtained by XXL on Monday (July 22), the plaintiffs are accusing the NBA squads of “exploiting the copyrights by synchronizing the works with the videos, which are intended to promote Defendants’ commercial activities, and then exploiting the videos on variety of consumer-facing platforms. Defendants did not obtain Plaintiffs’ license, authorization, or consent to synchronize the works with the videos.”

The songs listed in the lawsuits cross genres but include hip-hop tracks like Busta Rhymes‘ “Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See,” Shaq‘s “I Know I Got (Skills),” A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie‘s “Look Back at It,” DJ Khaled‘s “All I Do Is Win” and others.

The lawsuits seeks $150,000 for each infraction. As of press time, many of the videos in question have been removed from the team accounts.

XXL has reached out to the NBA for comment.

Copyright Infringement Crackdown

Rappers are mostly on the wrong end of copyright infringement lawsuits. Recently, there have been instances of rhymers and the companies that own their content fighting back against their music being used unlawfully. Last April, Universal Music Group took a hard stance against its artists’ music being manipulated using A.I. On a smaller scale, Boosie BadAzz recently won a $21,000 lawsuit against Celcius Nightclub in Fort Myers, Fla. for playing his music without an ASCAP license.