Wednesday, 14 October 2015
Jay Z Attends First Day of Federal Trial over 'Big Pimpin''
A copyright-infringement trial over Jay Z's hit song 'Big Pimpin'' has begun in LA. The rap superstar and music producer Timbaland exited the federal courthouse yesterday afternoon. They are accused of violating the rights of an Egyptian composer to create Jay Z' 1999 hit. Jay Z, whose real name is Shawn Carter, listened as a lawyer for the heirs of Egyptian composer Baligh Hamdi accused him and Timbaland of violating rights to Hamdi's 1957 hit, 'Khosara Khosara'. Attorneys for Timbaland, whose real name is Timothy Mosely, and Carter say they have secured the rights to 'Khosara Khosara', and that Hamdi's heirs have been repeatedly paid for its usage.
Jay Z adjusted his white shirt cuffs under his designer suit and strode to a witness stand in a Los Angeles courtroom Wednesday.
During an hour and a half of calm — often humorous — testimony, he told jurors he had no idea that the catchy Middle Eastern hook in his hit song "Big Pimpin" was a sample from a famous Egyptian composer, when he rapped over it in 1999.
He recalled hearing the music for the first time in a session with music producer Timothy (Timbaland) Mosley and thinking it "was the beginning of something that was special."
The track Timbaland played for him had lots of embellishment, he said, including some record scratching.
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He had no clue it was based on a 1957 song named "Khosara Khosara" from Egyptian star Baligh Hamdi, he testified.
"Timba is known for not using samples," Jay Z told the jury of six men and two women now hearing the civil lawsuit in federal court.
"I didn't think there was a sample in it at all," he said.
"Timbaland presented me with a track, and I thought it was a track Timbaland created," he said.
The music mogul, whose real name is Shawn Carter, took the stand on the second day of the copyright infringement trial brought by one of Hamdi's heirs.
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Under questioning by both sides, the Brooklyn-born superstar scored several laughs as he discussed growing up in the Marcy Houses in Bed-Stuy, breaking into the early rap scene, honing his "flow,"and creating his multi-million dollar entertainment empire while signing major stars including Rihanna and Kanye West.
"Some might have heard of him," his lawyer said at one point, referring to West.
"One or two. He's running for president," Jay Z said, causing a ripple of laughs among the 70 courtroom spectators.
Jay Z recalled putting his coat on and threatening to walk out on a late 90s session with Timbaland until the producer played him the track that included the four measures from "Khosara, Khosara."
Jay Z attends court as "Big Pimpin'" copyright trial gets underway
Reuters
He said he turned back around, took off his coat and got to work writing lyrics.
He never asked Timbaland where it came from, he said, describing their working relationship as one based on teasing and playful rivalry.
"He tells me his beats are better than my raps, and I tell him my raps are better than his beats. It's an ongoing thing that I keep winning," he said, scoring another laugh.
Hova said he continued to play the song at concerts, even after learning that it belonged to another composer, because he believed the proper licensing was eventually sought and granted.
"At some point there was a claim for it, and it was cleared up. The rights were granted," he testified.
"We have a license to use the song," he said.
Jay Z and Timbaland were sued by Hamdi's nephew Osama Ahmed Fahmy in 2007.
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Fahmy and his lawyer Peter Ross claim the music titans ripped off the song without proper permission — and then laced it with "vulgar" lyrics.
Ross asked Jay Z to admit under oath that his "Big Pimpin" lyrics were "sexually explicit" and "vulgar."
"It depends on your definition of vulgar," Jay Z responded. "Art can be vulgar."
The rap star said much of his music is based on the experiences of people he knows, and he counted the late New York artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, the comedian Richard Pryor and filmmaker Quentin Tarantino as influences.
He said it wasn't fair to assume his lyrics were autobiographical.
"Would you look at a Quentin Tarantino film and assume that's about his life? I don't understand (that)," he said.
KEVORK S. DJANSEZIAN/GETTY IMAGES
"Timbaland presented me with a track, and I thought it was a track Timbaland created," Jay Z said.
"I love music," he said at one point. "I have a God-given ability to do it, and I just feel it's a part of me."
Asked by his own lawyer for an inventory of his current businesses, Jay Z was quick to list his record label and entertainment and sports management company along with his restaurant and nightclub ventures.
His lawyer had to remind him about his music streaming business Tidal, which has struggled to gain traction.
"Oh yeah, I forgot about that," he said with a laugh.
In his opening statement Tuesday, Fahmy's lawyer said that according to Egyptian law, Jay Z and Timbaland had an obligation to get direct approval from Hamdi — or presumably his estate — before overlaying the looped sample with "vulgar and demeaning" lyrics.
"This case is about moral rights, here and in Egypt," Ross said.
While questioning Jay Z on Wednesday, Ross showed part of a contract that Jay Z signed with EMI Blackwood Music in 1997.
The contract included wording that prohibited others from adapting or changing Jay Z's work without his consent, the lawyer claimed.
Ross also asked the Grammy winner how he felt about people selling bootlegged versions of his work.
"When someone takes something from me without paying for it? Yeah, I wouldn't like that," he said.
But he maintained that his business team secured the proper licensing for the "Khosara, Khosara" sample as soon as a claim was made.
Lawyers for Timbaland and Jay Z have previously argued that the men secured the rights from EMI Music Arabia and another company — and that Fahmy got some of the royalty money.
As he left the witness stand, Jay Z stopped in the courtroom gallery to sign an autograph.
Asked by the Daily News what it was like to testify, he agreed it was "nerve wracking."
"Yeah, a little bit," he said with a laugh as he breezed out with his personal security.
With ndillon@nydailynews
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