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Musicians seek more than $500,000 from Kanye West in Hurricane copyright trial
Four musicians are seeking over $500,000 from Kanye West in a Los Angeles federal trial, alleging an early live version of Hurricane used their instrumental without authorization during his 2021 Atlanta stadium event.
A group of musicians is seeking more than $500,000 in a federal copyright trial against Kanye West over an early live version of Hurricane, performed at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta in July 2021.
The plaintiffs, Khalil Abdul Rahman, Sam Barsh, Dan Seeff, and Josh Mease, allege that West used material from their one-minute instrumental MSD PT2 during the stadium performance. The song later appeared on West’s 2021 album Donda, but the lawsuit centers on the live rendition, not the final album cut.
According to court filings, the musicians say their recording was shared with West’s team during early discussions and that they expected to be compensated for commercial use. Their attorney, Irene Lee, told the jury that an expert estimated the event generated about $5.5 million through ticketing, merchandise, an Apple streaming agreement, and a Gap deal tied to the jacket West wore on stage.
West’s attorney Eduardo Martorell disputed the damages argument in court, saying the event’s revenue came from West’s profile, not from what he described as “a one-minute and one-second instrumental.” He also argued that West believed he had permission to use the music.
The trial began Monday, May 4, in Los Angeles and is expected to run about one week. West is expected to testify.
The released version of Hurricane on Donda features The Weeknd and Lil Baby, with additional vocals from Sunday Service Choir and KayCyy. The track won Best Melodic Rap Performance at the 2022 Grammys.
West released Bully in March. Recent tour plans have faced cancellations in the UK, Switzerland, Poland, and France following backlash tied to his past anti-Semitic remarks.
