Hip Hop/Rap
Kanye West hit with $500k lawsuit as musicians claim his Hurricane stadium performance stole their work
Kanye West is facing a federal jury trial after four musicians accused him of using their instrumental without permission during an early live version of Hurricane.
Kanye West, now known as Ye, is being sued for more than $500,000 by a group of musicians who claim he used their work without permission during the first public performance of Hurricane at Atlanta’s Mercedes‑Benz Stadium in 2021.
The lawsuit, now in front of a federal jury in Los Angeles, centres on an early version of the track showcased at West’s Donda listening event in July 2021.
According to the complaint, the performance incorporated elements of MSD PT2 — a one‑minute instrumental created by Khalil Abdul Rahman, Sam Barsh, Dan Seeff and Josh Mease.
The musicians say the recording was shared with West’s team during early discussions and that they expected to be “compensated fairly” if any part of it was used.
Although the sample didn’t appear on the final album version of Hurricane, they argue that the public performance alone counts as infringement.
Their lawyer, Irene Lee, told the jury that expert analysis linked the stadium event to $5.5million in revenue for West through ticket sales, merchandise, a streaming deal with Apple and a Gap partnership tied to the jacket he wore on stage.
West’s attorney Eduardo Martorell pushed back, insisting the rapper’s star power — not a “one‑minute and one‑second instrumental” — drove the earnings.
He said: “We don’t think we should be here. This lawsuit should never have been filed."
Martorell added that the musicians “led my client to believe he had permission to use their music every step of the way.”
West is expected to testify during the week‑long trial, which began on May 4.
The album cut of Hurricane — the version that appeared on Donda — included contributions from The Weeknd, Lil Baby, the Sunday Service Choir and KayCyy, and later earned a Grammy for Best Melodic Rap Performance in 2022.
