Two musicians, Eric Reed and Willie Jones, are suing Kendrick Lamar for allegedly ripping off their music for his essential 2011 track "Rigamortis," TMZ reports.
According to their report, Reed and Jones composed a song called "The Thorn" back in 2010, which features the same "infectious rhythm and commanding horns" heard on Lamar's "Rigamortis." They claim Lamar sampled the song as background music on the Section.80 track and simply added his own lyrics. They maintain that "'The Thorn' isn't merely part of 'Rigamortis' ...IT IS 'Rigamortis.'"
Reeds and Jones received no credit on the song and are now suing for at least $1 million as well as all profits from and rights to the song.
Back in July, Lamar was slapped with a copyright lawsuit over improper sampling on another Section.80 track, "Keisha's Song (Her Pain)." Woolfsongs Limited, which manages works from Eric Woolfson and his music group, The Alan Parsons Project, filed a lawsuit claiming that the group's song "Old and Wise" was illegally sampled.
Lamar has yet to comment on the Reed/Jones lawsuit, but we'll update you as more information becomes available. For now, you be the judge. Compare "The Thorn" and "Rigamortis" below, and let us know if you think the song is a rip off.
