Joyner Lucas is dealing with a federal lawsuit in California after reposting a VladTV interview clip to his social media with out permission or credit score, allegedly to spice up his personal visibility.
Vlad accuses the rapper of copyright infringement for sharing a video from VladTV’s interview sequence. The clip options comic Aries Spears mocking British rap and was initially titled “Aries Spears Clowns British Rappers: That S**t Sounds Ridiculous! (Half 12).”
In response to the lawsuit, Lucas uploaded the five-minute phase to his @joynerlucas account on X on July 6. The submitting claims he cropped out the VladTV watermark earlier than sharing it along with his 1.5 million followers.
The publish shortly gained traction, pulling in 4.4 million views, 2,800 reposts and 20,000 likes earlier than X eliminated it in response to a Digital Millennium Copyright Act takedown request.
DJ Vlad, whose actual identify is Vlad Lyubovny, owns Sizzling In Right here, Inc., the guardian firm of VladTV. His attorneys argue that Lucas knowingly used the copyrighted materials to drive visitors to his account and promote his model.
The lawsuit says Joyner Lucas “inspired” others to share the video, which allegedly led to additional unauthorized distribution. It additionally claims the rapper income from elevated engagement on his social media, utilizing viral posts to advertise music and merchandise.
Earlier than submitting the lawsuit, Sizzling In Right here says it tried to resolve the problem out of court docket. Vlad was keen to drop any potential authorized motion in return for an interview with Joyner Lucas. Nonetheless, negotiations reportedly fell aside after Lucas’s supervisor, Dhruv Joshi, despatched an “expletive-filled textual content message” to VladTV’s authorized crew from Joyner Lucas himself.
“Pricey vlad…. Suck my d##okay. Name your lawyer and do no matter you must do. I wasn’t ever doing an interview with you earlier than on this lifetime and your def not a getting an interview now. So settle your authorized issues nevertheless you wish to settle them p##sy. I at all times thought you was a b##ch and this simply confirms the sort of b##ch you’re. No means on this lifetime or the following will I ever enable somebody such as you to attempt to extort me out of an interview. You bought me all the best way f##ked up.
Vlad is in search of as much as $150,000 in statutory damages, authorized charges and a everlasting injunction blocking Lucas from utilizing any VladTV content material sooner or later. It additionally needs a full accounting of any income Lucas might have earned from the publish.
VladTV, which boasts over six million YouTube subscribers, is acknowledged for its in-depth interviews with artists, comedians, and Hip-Hop figures. The platform has turn into a significant outlet for commentary and cultural dialogue within the style.
Joyner Lucas is a platinum-selling, Worcester, Massachusetts native recognized for collaborations with Will Smith, Chris Brown, Timbaland, Lil Child, Future, Eminem and others.
