Ex’s and Oh No’s: Bad Bunny’s Ex Sues for Copyright Infringement
Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny was sued for copyright infringement by his ex-girlfriend who claims that her voice is used without her consent in two songs: “Pa Ti” and “Dos Mil 16.”
Attribution
© Glenn Francis, www.PacificProDigital.com, CC-BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Earlier this year, Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny was sued for copyright infringement, among other claims, by his ex-girlfriend for $40 million. Carliz De La Cruz, Bad Bunny’s ex-girlfriend, claims that he has been using a recording of her voice in two songs: “Pa Ti” and “Dos Mil 16” without consent or compensation. The voice recording also appears in various lesser-known tracks that were uploaded to SoundCloud.
While De La Cruz and Bad Bunny were dating in 2015, he asked her to record herself saying the phrase “Bad Bunny, baby.” She recorded herself saying the phrase and sent him the voice recording, which was later used in various tracks. They ended their relationship in 2017. In early 2022, a representative from Rimas Entertainment, Bad Bunny’s record label, reached out to De La Cruz asking for permission to use the recording in an upcoming track, “Dos Mil 16,” and offering $2,000 for the use. During the conversation, the label mentioned that they also wanted to retroactively get her permission to use the voice recording in "Pa Ti.” De La Cruz declined the offer and refused to sign several contracts sent by the label. In May 2022, the song “Dos Mil 16” was released as part of his album “Un Verano Sin Ti,” and included De La Cruz’s voice recording in the song’s opening. The song was released after she had declined the labels offer.
Similar to Bad Bunny, in 2012, rapper Drake was sued by his ex-girlfriend Ericka Lee over the use of a voicemail sample on the song “Marvin’s Room. Drake had offered her 2% of royalties over text. The lawsuit has since been settled.
Copyright protects the expression of ideas. Section 102 of the Copyright Act states that for copyright protection to be granted, the expression must be an original work of authorship. This means that for the voice recording to be protected by copyright law, De La Cruz needs to prove that the phrase in the recording was an original idea, not basic information. A lawyer interviewed by Vice with respect to the issue mentions that “She [De La Cruz] knew that urban music artists mention their names in their songs. She decided with him that it would be a captivating idea if the word "baby" were added after the name "Bad Bunny." She had the idea with him that it would be best to record it in her voice.” However, short phrases tend to not be protected under copyright law.
The same lawyer believes there should have been a license implemented for Bad Bunny to use the recording. De La Cruz mentions that she consented to the songs while they were together, but she did not consent after that. As previously stated, the song “Dos Mil 16” was released about five years after their relationship had ended. An attorney interviewed by Complex mentions that a sample should not be used in a song if it has not been cleared.
Although this case is likely to be settled, it poses interesting questions regarding the use of voice messages in music, as it could mean artists will have to think twice before using a voice message or recording in their song. When using a voice recording in a song, the sample should be cleared and only be used when consent has been granted by the person whose voice is being used.