A judge just dismissed a lawsuit concerning Childish Gambino's acclaimed 2018 track, "This Is America." Moreover, rapper Kidd Wes (real name Emelike Wesley Nwosuocha) filed suit in 2021. He claimed that the song infringed on his 2016 cut "Made In America." According to documents obtained by Pitchfork, a judge in New York federal court dismissed the motion on Friday (March 24) with prejudice to leave to amend. Furthermore, Kidd Wes' attorneys stated that he is considering an appeal. In addition, this news on Donald Glover's previous hit comes after he made a musical return with the EP for his new series "Swarm."
"Mr. Nwosuocha is understandably disappointed, and is considering an appeal of the decision,” attorneys Imran H. Ansari and La'Shawn N. Thomas stated to the music-based publication. “He stands by his music, creativity, and the independence of grassroots artists to create their own music, and receive credit where credit is due, without the fear of it being apportioned by another." However, Judge Victor Marrero pointed out that Wes failed to register a compositional copyright in addition to that of his sound recording.
Childish Gambino's "This Is America"
"Even if Nwosuocha had a copyright registration for the composition of Plaintiff’s Composition, however, dismissal would be warranted here because the elements of Plaintiff’s Composition purportedly infringed upon are insufficiently original to warrant protection, or because they are not substantially similar to the Challenged Composition,” the dismissal read. "More could be said on the ways these songs differ, but no more airtime is needed to resolve this case." Regarding that last part, the judge referred to differences in lyrics and each song's themes.
Also, many of Glover's collaborators on the track also faced repercussions for their role in "This Is America." In addition to the "Atlanta" series creator, the suit named co-writer Young Thug and producer Lüdwig Goransson. Various record and publishing companies were also codefendants in this lawsuit. Moreover, Pitchfork sought comment from Gambino's camp, but no such statements have come as of writing this article. Regardless, return to HNHH for the latest on Donald Glover and his musical alter-ego, which is apparently coming back soon.