Universal Music Publishing Group faces a copyright infringement lawsuit from Tuff City Records over an alleged unlicensed sample in Mary J. Blige's 1992 hit "Real Love." The sample in question comes from the Honey Drippers' 1973 funk song "Impeach the President."

Photo Credit: Condé Nast / Vogue Taiwan / CC by 3.0

Key Details of the Lawsuit:

• Filed on April 4 in Manhattan federal court
• Mary J. Blige is not named as a defendant
• UMG Recordings has already reached an agreement for the master recording
• Universal Music Publishing Group has not secured rights for the song's composition
• Tuff City claims they repeatedly notified UMPG about the uncleared sample

Background on "Impeach the President":

• Released in 1973 by the Honey Drippers
• Features a widely sampled drum break used by artists like 2Pac, Notorious B.I.G., Dr. Dre, Run-DMC, and Doja Cat
• Previously involved in a 1991 lawsuit against Sony Music and Def Jam over LL Cool J songs

Tuff City Records' Legal History:

• Has filed numerous copyright lawsuits over sampling in the past 15 years
• Previous suits against Jay-Z, Christina Aguilera, Beastie Boys, and Frank Ocean
• Lost a case against Beastie Boys in 2018 and was ordered to repay legal fees
• Their 1991 lawsuit was one of the first major legal challenges to unauthorized sampling in hip-hop

The case continues to highlight ongoing issues surrounding sample clearance and music copyright in the modern music industry.

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