Steely And Clevie’s Lawsuit For Copyright Infringement Against Almost the Whole Reggaeton Genre, Over 150 Artistes Implicated

In an action filed by Jamaican duo Steely & Clevie, they asserted that nearly 2,000 songs have sampled and interpolated the reggae track Fish Market since its release in 1989. The drum beats that form the backbone of the song came from Jamaican dancehall duo Steely & Clevie, consisting of Wycliffe Johnson and Cleveland Browne, who co-wrote the song in question.

The complaint traces reggaetón history, including songs, starting in the early Nineties that referenced Steely & Clevie’s 1989 classic. According to reports, some of the popular songs in the lawsuit include Daddy Yankee’s Dura and Gasolina, Drake and Bad Bunny Mia, Selena Gomez, DJ Snake, Ozuna, and Cardi B’s Taki Taki.

However, 107 of the more than 150 musicians named as defendants in the case filed three motions in early June, requesting that the case be thrown out, according to numerous reports.

Heavily fingered in the case is international superstar Bad Bunny. As Bunny’s lawyers assert, the plaintiffs are trying to “monopolize practically the entire reggaeton genre” by claiming the ownership of sampled compositions used by more than 100 artistes throughout more than 1,600 songs.

Pryor Cashman, a law firm representing over 80 musicians, including Pitbull, Jason Derulo, Ricky Martin, Stefflon Don, Justin Bieber, Diplo, Ricky Martin, J Blavin, Luis Fonsi, Becky G, and Rosalia, among others, also filed a motion in response to the lawsuit. 

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The motion argued that the case was too large and that the attorneys for Clevie and Steely had not satisfied the fundamental elements of a copyright infringement claim. The attorneys also argued that the case size was a catastrophe.

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