Parliament-Funkadelic’s George Clinton files $100 million copyright lawsuit against former business partner
Parliament-Funkadelic’s George Clinton has filed a $100 million copyright lawsuit against his former business partner Arman Boladian. The legendary frontman claims that Boladian and his Bridgeport Music company fraudulently acquired copyrights to 90% percent of his catalogue, costing him millions in royalties.
In a suit submitted to a federal court in Florida on Tuesday 11th March and seen by Variety, lawyers acting behalf of Clinton claimed that Boladian’s Bridgeport Music, as well as Westbound Records, Nine Records, Southfield Music and Eastbound Records, have effectively stolen the singer and musician’s discography and “capitalised on his success”.
Damages are being pursued following an alleged “decades-long scheme to defraud Clinton”, including improper use of his signature to grant rights to Boladian. Per Variety, the defendant is also accused of fabricating legal documents between 1982 and 1985 to designate additional rights to Clinton’s catalogue, and adding fake names and pseudonyms to copyright registrations to dilute his shares in royalties.
“These songs we’re talking about is my history,” said Clinton at a press conference. “I have to fight for them, I have to make sure that I did not do all of this my whole life and have my family here, not get what’s due to them, what they inherit. We don’t have a chance to pass down 40 acres and mules to our families. We do not have the copyrights for the songs. So I’m here along with Ben and partners to make sure that Armen does not get what we worked so hard for.”
The case also notes that Clinton wasn’t named as a plaintiff in any of the previous cases brought about by Bridgeport Music over his music. The firm reportedly has a history of suing artists including Jay-Z and N.W.A. for using samples from Clinton’s archive. As a result, Baladian has been labelled a “copyright troll” who uses the courts to profit from work “he looted the rights to”.
“For decades, George Clinton has shaped the sound of music and inspired generations of artists, yet he has been systematically deprived of the rights and royalties he rightfully deserves,” Ben Crump, Clinton’s attorney in the lawsuit, told Billboard.
This is just the latest dispute in an ongoing battle between Clinton and Boladian. A previous Florida hearing in 2001 found that music written between 1976 and 1983 legally belonged to Bridgeport, while Boladian lost a 2021 defamation suit against Clinton over claims made in the latter’s 2014 autobiography, Brothas Be, Yo Like George, Ain’t That Funkin’ Kinda Hard On You?: A Memoir.
“This is just the latest in a series of lawsuits that Mr. Clinton has filed against Armen Boladian and his companies over the last 30 years raising the same exact issues,” Richard Busch, who represents Baladian, said in a statement to Variety, confirming an intention to counter-sue. “He has lost each and every time, including in the very courthouse in which he has filed this latest lawsuit.”
The full lawsuit has been published online here.
