This week, reports surfaced of a lawsuit being filed against the Wu-Tang Clan as a result of the hip-hop group’s “People Say” single—a track originally found on the crew’s The Saga Continues project of last year.
It was TMZ who broke news of The Diplomats—a soul group from the 1950s and 1960s—filing a claim that the record pulled from the “melody, lyrics, and rhythm” of their 1969 recording “I’ve Got the Kind of Love” on which the line “people say” is used in heavy rotation. The report claimed that The Diplomats wanted Wu-Tang to stop performing and selling the track in addition to handing over an undisclosed amount for damages.
Now, Wu-Tang DJ and beatmaker Mathematics, who produced the joint and is directly implicated in the dispute, has responded to the allegations, revealing that while a claim was brought to his attention, no physical lawsuit exists.
“I was made aware of the ‘People Say’ sample claim in December,” he penned by way of a Twitter on Saturday. “To my knowledge, my attorney and The Diplomats attorney have been working closely and in good faith to resolve this matter. I am not aware of a pending lawsuit regarding this matter nor have I been served with one.”
“People Say” opens up with a direct sample of the “I’ve Got The Kind Of Love” and certainly brings up the question as to why the sample wasn’t simply cleared before release, especially considering that neither Mathematics nor Wu-Tang are new to this. Nonetheless, let’s hope this one can get resolved without any further controversy.