Travis Scott, Future and SZA sued for copyright infringement
Travis Scott, Future and SZA have been hit with a lawsuit accusing them of copyright infringement. Roc Nation singer/songwriter Victory Boyd has sued the three artists for stealing elements of her 2019 song ‘Like the Way It Sounds’ for ‘Telekinesis’.
The song appeared on Scott’s 2023 album UTOPIA and was produced by the Houston rapper alongside Kanye West, BoogzDaBeast, Jahaan Sweet and Hudson Mohawke. ‘Telekinesis’ boasts over 414 million streams on Spotify, peaking at number 26 on the Hot 100 and number 31 on the UK Singles Chart.
The legal complaint was filed in Manhattan federal court on January 8th. According to documents obtained by Rolling Stone, the song was allegedly recorded and released without her permission. Documents claim that Scott began creating the alleged infringed work in Wyoming after Boyd’s song was left in Kanye’s studio.
Boyd claims she shared her song with Ye, who recorded a version of the track called ‘Ultrasounds’ with Scott. While it was never released, the song appeared on SoundCloud two years ago. The final version ended up being ‘Telekinesis’.
“Scott, SZA, Future and all defendants intentionally and willfully copied plaintiffs’ original work, specifically plaintiff’s lyrics, when they commercially released the infringing work,” the lawsuit reads. “Upon information and belief, Scott, SZA and Future intentionally and willfully copied Plaintiff’s Original Work, specifically Plaintiff’s Lyrics and Melody, when they created the Infringing Work in May of 2023.”
The metadata attached to the streaming release in July 2023 credited Boyd as a songwriter, but she was “unaware” that ‘Telekinesis’ was copied for commercial release. The lawsuit states that Boyd intended to release her own version of the song through Roc Nation.
Boyd is asking defendants to “recall and destroy” all copies of work that utilises her original song. She’s also requesting payment in “an amount to be determined at trial in actual damages and profits, plus interest” and “a full and complete accounting of all profits obtained from their marketing, distribution, and national television broadcasting.”
The album ‘Telekinesis’ appeared on, UTOPIA, debuted at number one on Billboard 200 chart with 496,000 units in its first week, becoming Scott’s fourth album to top the chart.