Kanye West is in hot waters again with his newly released album Vultures 1 as he allegedly sampled Donna Summer’s song without permission. The estate of the later singer accused the rapper of copyright infringement.
This is not the first time West has gotten into trouble with sampling music from other artists. Previously, he was criticized online by rock music icon Ozzy Osbourne for sampling a live version of ‘War Pigs’ without consent.
Kanye West Reportedly Used Samples From Artists Without Permission
The estate of the late singer Donna Summer expressed their disappointment on social media over Kanye West using her song ‘I Feel Love’ in his brand-new album.
“Kanye West… asked permission to use Donna Summer’s song ‘I Feel Love,’ he was denied… he changed the words, had someone re-sing it or used AI, but it’s ‘I Feel Love’… copyright infringement!!!”
They accused the rapper of using a version that was either AI-generated or someone impersonating the voice of Summer. West’s twelfth studio album received so much scrutiny for allegedly using samples from other artists without their permission.
The same post also tagged Sharon Osbourne who recently condemned the rapper for inappropriately using her husband’s song in one of the tracks. Former Black Sabbath frontman Ozzy Osbourne took to Twitter his sentiments:
“@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. HE WENT AHEAD AND USED THE SAMPLE ANYWAY AT HIS ALBUM LISTENING PARTY LAST NIGHT. I WANT NO ASSOCIATION WITH THIS MAN!”
Sharon’s father, Don Arden, is Jewish. She told TMZ that West “f—ked with the wrong Jew” and stated that he “represents hate” and is a “disrespectful anti-Semite.” She insisted that her husband had every right to decline West’s request, and she also called the rapper a “pig.” In another interview with Billboard, she explained:
“We get so many requests for these songs, and when we saw that request, we just said no way. We’ve been in touch with his team… And it’s also an issue of having respect for another artist.”
West’s Vultures 1 album marked the icon’s first release since 2021 and after his string of hate speech against the Jewish community. This behavior has lost him a number of collaborations with brands such as Adidas and Def Jam.
Kanye West Included Vile Anti-Semitic Lyrics In His Album
Apart from the alleged ripping off of samples, Kanye West’s title track Vultures was also condemned for including the lyrics: “How am I anti-Semitic? I just f—ked a Jewish b—h.”
This caused enough backlash from the American Jewish Committee and from many fans. Spokesman Richard Hirschhaut told TMZ:
“To fuel the flames of antisemitism and promote such bile to his millions of followers, especially at this fraught and dangerous time for the Jewish community, is unforgivable.”
West is notoriously known for using his social media platform and music to express his aversion to the Jewish community which can be seen as a detrimental influence on the youth.
