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Lil Wayne Sued By Rolling Stones’ Publishers For “Playing With Fire”

7/25/08, 8:58 am EST

Lil Wayne has been sued by the music publishing company that owns the rights to the Rolling Stones’ “Play With Fire,” as the company says Wayne’s “Playing With Fire,” off Tha Carter III, infringes on the song’s copyright and poses unfair competition. Abkco alleges that the Wayne’s song is an altered version of the Stones’ 1965 hit, saying the original song and music had been used in a recognizable way with permission. The lawsuit cites lyrical comparisons like the Stones’ original chorus “But don’t play with me, ’cause you’re playing with fire,” and Wayne’s line “But you can’t blame me if I set this stage on fire.” In the lawsuit, Abkco says that the public might assume the Rolling Stones approve of Wayne’s uses “explicit, sexist and offensive language.” Abkco is seeking unspecified damages, but if this case goes down anything like when the Verve got sued over that orchestral sample of “The Last Time” used in “Bittersweet Symphony,” Wayne might be giving back a bunch of his TC3 royalties money.

[Photo: Getty]


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Comments

weezybabiluvr | 6/3/2009, 11:45 pm EST

man i love lil wayne soooooo much hez so fine he made that song better than it would ever be i love weezi babi!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

buddy | 5/31/2009, 10:58 am EST

wayne is tha best point blank period deze bitches hate for someone to be more successful than them especially if dey dnt share da same skin color dey were probably on da verge of going broke! and who better to fck with than tha multimillionaire hoodstar turned rockstar wayne! sh!t pisses me off

buddy | 5/31/2009, 10:52 am EST

fck all u b!tches dat want him to b sued

cupcake | 4/14/2009, 2:01 pm EST

i luv lil wayne no matter wat he is soooooo FINE im his #1 fan fo eva

Anonymous | 4/9/2009, 10:28 pm EST

“LIL WAYNE MADE A BETTER VERSION OF THE SONG ROLLING STONES WAS JUST JEALOUS THAT LIL WAYNE VERSION WAS BETTER ROLLING STONES STOP HATEING BITCHES HATEING AINT GOOD FOR U”

that is a really gross thing to say

Yolanda | 3/29/2009, 8:16 pm EST

he definitely got what he deserved.

the x | 2/5/2009, 3:35 pm EST

lil wayne is my favorite rapper of all time he got enough money to pay this off

Alizea | 12/1/2008, 10:09 am EST

alize philpot want’s him bad

Alizea | 12/1/2008, 10:08 am EST

alize philpot want’s him bad

Alizea | 12/1/2008, 10:07 am EST

the best rapper and has a good attitude

Alizea | 12/1/2008, 10:06 am EST

want’s him to fuck her

Mick | 11/26/2008, 11:55 pm EST

to the folks that say ‘Brown Sugar’ by the Rolling Stones is sexist– the song is supposed to be biographical to happenings in New Orleans in times of salvery.

Mick | 11/26/2008, 9:55 pm EST

I agree, Id like to hear what the Stones themselves would have to say about it. I like lil Wayne, but the Stones are one of those bands that just took everything about earlier american rock n roll from the 50’s and evolved it into the 60’s. They both deserve merit though, and Im sure wayne had good intentions and probably digs the band alot, they should cut him some slack, that lyric is not the same and for most of lil waynes core audience they wouldnt know anyways unless they were adventurous enough to go into listening to the British invasion bands…honestly i think rock n roll needs to go back to black folks, maybe itll get its integrity back anywho.

Blak | 11/25/2008, 3:30 pm EST

Wayne’s at tha top of his game right now and we all know when ur on top, somebody gotta go atcha. Abkco probably wouldn’t even had cared if Wayne wasn’t where he’s at right now period

im me | 11/19/2008, 4:01 pm EST

they just wana fuck over the most famous person on the face of the world

Darius | 11/7/2008, 4:35 pm EST

See hahaha dey cat stop hip hop so they have2 sue LIL WAYNE MAKIN MORE MONEY DEN DE MA THEY CANT TAKE IT PLAYIN WITH FIRE IS A GOOD SONG

? | 11/6/2008, 12:43 am EST

please let lil wayne shine

Eh | 9/26/2008, 11:40 am EST

Didn’t know that was Rolling Stones… Thought of Jerry Lee Lewis for a sec though. No one makes original music anymore… Shit, if they’re suing hi, they should sue the other thousands of artists that do it too… Stupid

IESHEA | 9/24/2008, 6:51 pm EST

LIL WAYNE MADE A BETTER VERSION OF THE SONG ROLLING STONES WAS JUST JEALOUS THAT LIL WAYNE VERSION WAS BETTER ROLLING STONES STOP HATEING BITCHES HATEING AINT GOOD FOR U

CJH09 | 9/16/2008, 1:32 pm EST

LIL WYANE IS THE SHIT

Kelcey | 9/3/2008, 8:52 am EST

I think thats bullshit, lil wayne made a good song outta that… who gives a shit if he altered it… he made it his own, and he’ll probably make his version more famous than the one thats been out…

what a noob | 8/4/2008, 5:35 pm EST

little wayne sucks balls period

Uuuuuuggggh Greedy Lawyers!!! | 7/27/2008, 1:54 am EST

Went to Youtube to listen to the Rolling Stone “Playing with Fire” there is simply nothing that would have made me think that song….believe it or not Kevin Federline had a song with the same title on his album; there have been phrases in other songs and movies which say the same thing; that phrase isn’t unique and Lil Wayne song sounds nothing like there song….

Joe | 7/26/2008, 1:06 pm EST

(sigh) It’s OK for the Rolling Stones to do this, but everyone on this blog loves to use the word “sellout” when talking about commericalized, poppy groups like the Jonas Brothers.

elric | 7/26/2008, 5:09 am EST

ive listened to the stones song millions of times and didnt even notice, because theres nothing to notice. no sonic similarities. barely lyrical similarities.

sy | 7/25/2008, 9:31 pm EST

i hope he pays severely

garysi | 7/25/2008, 5:54 pm EST

he should have asked permission first. I am surprised his manager and/or label didn’t warn him about the Stones. It’s well known they have some of the best legal minds in the business, watching out for just this type of infringement. Easy Money and maybe an easy Grammy for them.

mattdiggsit | 7/25/2008, 5:54 pm EST

The songs are COMPLETELY different. The words are COMPLETELY different. Stupid lawyers.

Guy | 7/25/2008, 4:58 pm EST

The comparison is so insignificant. I can’t believe that record companies would go this far. They are ruining music. Why don’t they just keep releasing Miley Cyrus shit cause thats real music.

Big Wayne | 7/25/2008, 3:07 pm EST

awesome - you took the words right out of my mouth

awesome | 7/25/2008, 1:14 pm EST

i dig it when talentless douche bags get hit with lawsuits. better than coffee for me, personally.

Logan | 7/25/2008, 12:42 pm EST

I wish that the actual band involved would get involved in disputes like this more often, instead of just the people who own the rights. They just realized that he was taking in a ton of cash, and that they could probably snatch up some of his earnings. MCs take from each other all the time. The difference here is that Wayne taped in to the realm of Rock&Roll, and The Rolling Stones at that. So companies like Abkco will use the name of the legendary band to steal from Wayne. Lil Wayne is probably just a fan of the original song. Leave it be, dear God. I would like to hear what the Stones themselves would say about this, but Abkco probably doesn’t, not really anyway. It’s a sham.

shampaine | 7/25/2008, 12:29 pm EST

watup

Chris | 7/25/2008, 12:15 pm EST

Yeah cause the Stones are a shining example of not using expicit, offensive, sexist lyrics. Brown Sugar anyone?

Anonymous | 7/25/2008, 12:14 pm EST

“Abkco says that the public might assume the Rolling Stones approve of Wayne’s uses ‘explicit, sexist and offensive language’.”

Yeah because Brown Sugar is just sexist, explicit and offensive enough for the Stones.

Nayer | 7/25/2008, 10:28 am EST

Stick it to him!

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