Donna Summer and Kanye West Getty Images
The late Donna Summer’s estate accused Kanye West of copyright infringement.
“Kanye West … asked permission to use Donna Summer’s song ‘I Feel Love,’ he was denied,” a statement on Summer’s official Instagram Story read on Saturday, February 10. “He changed the words, had someone re-sing it or used AI but it’s ‘I Feel Love.’”
The team of the legendary disco star concluded: “Copyright infringement!”
They tagged the official accounts for West, 46, Ty Dolla Sign, Warner Chappell Music, Universal Music Group and Sharon Osbourne in her post. West allegedly used an interpolation of Summer’s “I Feel Love” on one of his new tracks. Her estate remains in charge of her art following her 2012 death at age 63 due to lung cancer.
Sharon, 71, and husband Ozzy Osbourne shared similar complaints several hours earlier.
“@kanyewest ASKED PERMISSION TO SAMPLE A SECTION OF A 1983 LIVE PERFORMANCE OF ‘WAR PIG’ FROM THE US FESTIVAL WITHOUT VOCALS & WAS REFUSED PERMISSION BECAUSE HE IS AN ANTISEMITE AND HAS CAUSED UNTOLD HEARTACHE TO MANY,” Ozzy, 75, wrote via X on Friday, referring to the Black Sabbath song. “HE WENT AHEAD AND USED THE SAMPLE ANYWAY AT HIS ALBUM LISTENING PARTY LAST NIGHT. I WANT NO ASSOCIATION WITH THIS MAN!”
West and Ty Dolla Sign’s new album, Vultures, dropped on Friday, February 9, after an official listening party one day earlier in Chicago. Neither rapper has publicly addressed the complaints. Us Weekly has reached out for comment.
Donna Summer Courtesy of Donna Summer/Instagram
Sharon further alleged that West, “true to form,” went ahead and used the “War Pigs” sample regardless of being denied permission.
“The Osbourne family have never wanted any association with Kanye West,” Sharon wrote via X on Saturday. “He is an anti-Semitic fool who spews his rhetoric out into the world, Kanye you f—ked with the wrong dude this time. Sincerely, Sharon Osbourne.”
In 2022, West made headlines for sharing antisemitic remarks on Instagram and X that got him temporarily banned from the social media platforms. While West ultimately apologized for his comments, he lost several million-dollar brand deals.
Kanye West continues to be dropped by major brands as the backlash against his antisemitic comments grows greater. The “Famous” artist made headlines on October 8 after tweeting, “I’m a bit sleepy tonight but when I wake up I’m going death con 3 [sic] On JEWISH PEOPLE. The funny thing is I actually can’t be […]
West’s ex-wife, Kim Kardashian, condemned his comments. (The rapper and Kardashian, 43, split in 2021 and their divorce was finalized one year later.)
“I feel so bad for him. I don’t even think he feels bad for himself. I don’t even know if he knows how. I just feel so bad. He’ll probably go off on me [if I reach out],” Kardashian said in a July 2023 episode of her eponymous Hulu docuseries. “But then I feel guilty that I posted something in support of the Jewish community and then people dropped him today and I’m like, ‘Is that my fault, that I posted that? Did that push them and I should I have just kept quiet but I’m vocal about everything else?’ I never know what to do.”
She added at the time, “The whole situation is sad and I don’t know how to emotionally manage it. I’m conflicted because I don’t ever want [to] jump in and be part of a downfall of the father of my kids.”
Kardashian and West have continued to coparent kids North, 10, Saint, 8, Chicago, 6, and Psalm, 4, since their divorce. West also moved on, marrying Bianca Censori in December 2022.
