Black Sheep’s Class Action Lawsuit Against UMG Is Dismissed

The choice was United States District Judge Jennifer Rochon’s since she had the power to dismiss Black Sheep’s class action lawsuit against UMG. Earlier this year, the rap duo, whose biggest hit “The Choice Is Yours” came out in 1991, alleged that the world’s largest record label had engaged in a “sweetheart” deal with Spotify that boxed them out of royalties due to them per the 1990 contract they signed with Universal imprint Polygram.

According to Pitchfork, however, Judge Rochon believes the duo waited too long to file their suit since it wasn’t covered by the statute of limitations for their contract, and argued that UMG was not in breach of contract. Reps for Black Sheep and UMG have not replied to Rolling Stone’s requests for comment.

In January, Black Sheep members Andres “Dres” Titus and William “Mista Lawnge” McLean filed a class action lawsuit intended to include other UMG artists, seeking $750 million in damages. They claimed that UMG accepted cash and stock from Spotify in exchange for providing music to the platform. The deal allegedly allowed Spotify to pay lower royalties. Black Sheep also accused UMG of paying smaller amounts to its artists and depriving them of stock due to them per their contracts.

The artists claimed that their contract guaranteed them half of Universal’s “net receipts” for any exploitation of their music. This deal, they claimed, should have provided Universal’s artists with 50 percent of its Spotify stock, which, in 2021, was worth $1.7 billion. Although Black Sheep didn’t name any fellow plaintiffs in the suit, they claimed the “class” could include thousands of artists. They said that only Universal knew how many artists would be covered.

In January, a UMG spokesperson told Rolling Stone that the company felt the lawsuit lacked merit. “Universal Music Group‘s innovative leadership has led to the renewed growth of the music ecosystem to the benefit of recording artists, songwriters and creators around the world,” the spokesperson said. “UMG has a well-established track record of fighting for artist compensation and the claim that it would take equity at the expense of artist compensation is patently false and absurd. Given that this is pending litigation, we cannot comment on all aspects of the complaint.”

The choice was United States District Judge Jennifer Rochon’s since she had the power to dismiss Black Sheep’s class action lawsuit against UMG. Earlier this year, the rap duo, whose biggest hit “The Choice Is Yours” came out in 1991, alleged that the world’s largest record label had engaged in a “sweetheart” deal with Spotify that boxed them out of royalties due to them per the 1990 contract they signed with Universal imprint Polygram.

According to Pitchfork, however, Judge Rochon believes the duo waited too long to file their suit since it wasn’t covered by the statute of limitations for their contract, and argued that UMG was not in breach of contract. Reps for Black Sheep and UMG have not replied to Rolling Stone’s requests for comment.

In January, Black Sheep members Andres “Dres” Titus and William “Mista Lawnge” McLean filed a class action lawsuit intended to include other UMG artists, seeking $750 million in damages. They claimed that UMG accepted cash and stock from Spotify in exchange for providing music to the platform. The deal allegedly allowed Spotify to pay lower royalties. Black Sheep also accused UMG of paying smaller amounts to its artists and depriving them of stock due to them per their contracts.

The artists claimed that their contract guaranteed them half of Universal’s “net receipts” for any exploitation of their music. This deal, they claimed, should have provided Universal’s artists with 50 percent of its Spotify stock, which, in 2021, was worth $1.7 billion. Although Black Sheep didn’t name any fellow plaintiffs in the suit, they claimed the “class” could include thousands of artists. They said that only Universal knew how many artists would be covered.

In January, a UMG spokesperson told Rolling Stone that the company felt the lawsuit lacked merit. “Universal Music Group‘s innovative leadership has led to the renewed growth of the music ecosystem to the benefit of recording artists, songwriters and creators around the world,” the spokesperson said. “UMG has a well-established track record of fighting for artist compensation and the claim that it would take equity at the expense of artist compensation is patently false and absurd. Given that this is pending litigation, we cannot comment on all aspects of the complaint.”