MTV is reporting that Dr. Dre has been ordered to pay $1.5 million to the copyright holder (London-based Minder Music Ltd.) of a track he illegally used in his latest album. According to Dre, he consulted a musicologist who said the riff was commonplace and then hired a musician to play the bassline for “Let’s Get High”.
The jury felt Dre’s actions were innocent infringement, but fined him anyway. The original lawsuit was filed for $3.5 million, but since Dre’s actions were considered ‘innocent infringement’ they lowered the final judgment to $1.5 million.
“This matter has been going on for three years and we should never have had to go to court; needless to say the cost was horrendous,” said Minder Music’s music director, John Fogarty, who testified in the trial. “However, it’s a great day for music publishing. The notion that someone can take someone else’s work and put their own name down as creator is outrageous.”
“Minder Music sued Dre in 2000, around the time Lucasfilm sued him for using their signature sound effect to open his second album.”
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