Shenseea, Interscope Snub $10 Million ‘Lick’ Lawsuit, Judge Sets Deadline For Default Judgment

A US judge has today set a deadline for a motion of default judgment against Jamaican singer Shenseea and her label Interscope Records after there was no response to the $10 million copyright lawsuit brought by NY-based producer Anastas ‘Pupa Nas-T’ Hackett over her Lick collab with rapper Megan Thee Stallion.

According to court records seen by DancehallMag, Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil has also dismissed the lawsuit against the two other named defendants, ATAL Music Limited and Alexandre Escolier, after Hackett and his company Travelling Man Productions, LLC, failed to file proof of service of a summons on them.

Hackett did, however, provide proof of service on Shenseea, whose real name is Chinsea Linda Lee, and Interscope Records.  The singer and her label were each served with a summons containing Hackett’s 9-page complaint at a New York address on April 22, 2022, the court records show.

But, judge Vyskocil noted that Shenseea and Interscope had not filed a response to the complaint, even though they were required by law to do so by May 13, 2022. “No responses were filed, and Plaintiffs have not prosecuted this case to date,” the judge wrote in the order, which was filed today (June 14).

“Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that any motion for entry of a default judgment as against Defendants Interscope Records Inc. and Chinsea Linda Lee shall be filed by July 14, 2022,” the judge added.

According to Cornell Law School, when a defendant is summoned to appear before the court but fails to respond to the court’s legal order, the judge can rule for default judgment and thereby decide the case in the plaintiff’s favor. The defendant, though not present before the court, is obligated to abide by the court’s ruling for default judgment.

The judge warned that the entire lawsuit would be dismissed if Hackett failed to file for a default judgment by the July deadline.  Vyskocil has also advised that the lawsuit may be restored against ATAL Music and Escolier if an application is made by July 14, 2022.

Hackett had filed the lawsuit in March this year, alleging that Shenseea and her co-defendants released Lick without his consent on January 21, 2022, after he denied a September 2021 request for clearance to use elements from Denise Belfon’s song Work in Lick.  According to Hackett, who produced and co-wrote Work with Harkness Taitt in 1999, he refused the request due to “inadequate terms offered.”

The lawsuit demanded, among other things, that Hackett be awarded copyright infringement damages in the amount of $150,000; wilful infringement damages in excess of $10,000,000; and actual damages and profits from 43 sources including sales, ringtones, streaming, endorsements, and touring.

Additionally, the suit demanded that the Court order Shenseea and her co-defendants to remove and destroy all traces of Lick from the public domain.

Following its release in January, Lick peaked at No. 20 on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100.

In the US, it is Shenseea’s highest-charting song to date, as a lead artist.  Last month, the singer remarked that she believed the song did what it was supposed to do.

Lick, which was produced by Canadian hitmaker Murda Beatz, appeared on Shenseea’s debut album Alpha, which was released on March 11.  The album opened at No. 2 on the Billboard Reggae Albums chart.

In 2019, Shenseea signed to Interscope Records/Rich Immigrants, a joint venture spearheaded by Jamaican producer Rvssian.

Edit: Clarified headline.