Rapper and songwriter Eminem’s publishers, Eight Mile Style, LLC and Martin Affiliated, LLC, are fighting a political party over the rights to use the song “Lose Yourself.”
The Grammy award-winner’s publishers have filed for copyright infringement against New Zealand’s National Party.
The New Zealand National Party is being accused of using Eminem’s 2002 hit song, “Lose Yourself,” for prime ministers John Key’s 2014 re-election campaign ad. The National Party campaign ad uses a narration over an instrumental track which allegedly resembles Eminem’s single.
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“In proceedings filed today in the Wellington Registry of the High Court of New Zealand, Eight Mile Style, LLC and Martin Affiliated, LLC, the Detroit-based publishers of Eminem’s copyrights, are seeking damages for copyright infringement against the New Zealand National Party,” a statement read, The New Zealand Herald reports.
Eminem is no stranger to lawsuits over his academy-award winning song, “Lose Yourself.” His publishers have aggressively protected the rapper’s work from being distributed without permission. The hip-hop star’s past lawsuits include companies such as Apple, Facebook and Audi. Now he is going after prime minster John Key for illegally using “Lose Yourself.”
The National Party intends to fight the lawsuit, claiming they took proper precautions with purchasing the music and that they were told about the claim two weeks prior to the file and stopped using the track.