Yung Gravy Settles Lawsuit With Rick Astley Over Vocal Impersonation Claims

Highlights

• Yung Gravy settled a vocal impersonation lawsuit with Rick Astley over his song "Betty (Get Money)" that used elements from Astley's 1987 single without authorization.
• The lawsuit alleged that the public couldn't tell the difference and believed it was actually Astley singing. The stealing of Astley's voice without a license was seen as an effort to capitalize on his popularity.
• Though the exact settlement figure hasn't been released, it is likely that Astley negotiated a six-figure sum or more, considering Gravy's potential millions in profits from the single.

Yung Gravy has likely paid up big after settling a vocal impersonation lawsuit with Rick Astley. In a legal dispute that began earlier this year, Astley took legal action against Yung Gravy the rapper over his 2022 single "Betty (Get Money)."

This song used elements from Astley's 1987 single "Never Gonna Give You Up" without proper permission. While Gravy reportedly secured the rights to use “underlying musical composition” from the song, what he didn’t have was authorization to use Astley’s voice, leading to the legal conflict.

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"The public could not tell the difference. The imitation of Mr. Astley's voice was so successful the public believed it was actually Mr. Astley singing," court documents from Astley’s team said, alleging the musician’s belief that his real voice was sampled in Yung Gravy’s hit. "In an effort to capitalize off of the immense popularity and goodwill of Mr. Astley."

"A license to use the original underlying musical composition does not authorize the stealing of the artist's voice in the original recording," the lawsuit went on. "So, instead, they resorted to theft of Mr. Astley's voice without a license and without agreement."

Rather than going to court, the legal teams for the two musicians were recently able to reach a settlement to rest the case. The exact figure hasn’t been released, but considering Gravy possibly made millions in profits from his single, Astley may have easily negotiated a six-figure sum or more.

Some copyright infringement cases involving hit songs have resulted in million-dollar payouts. For example, in 2015, a jury determined the hit song "Blurred Lines" by Robin Thicke, Pharrell, and T.I. infringed upon Marvin Gaye's song "Got to Give It Up." As a result, the jury awarded the Gaye family $7.4 million in damages.

“While we respect the judicial process, we are extremely disappointed in the ruling made today, which sets a horrible precedent for music and creativity going forward.,” Thicke, Pharrell, and T.I. said in a statement following the ruling.

“Blurred Lines was created from the heart and minds of Pharrell, Robin and T.I. and not taken from anyone or anywhere else,” it continued. “We are reviewing the decision, considering our options and you will hear more from us soon about this matter.”

Interestingly, Astley’s lawsuit was initiated by Richard Busch, the lawyer who successfully represented the winning side in the copyright dispute involving "Blurred Lines."

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