Yung Gravy is getting a authorized Rick-rolling from the person himself … Rick Astley is suing the up-and-coming rapper for allegedly ripping off the singer’s voice from his hottest hit.
Astley filed authorized docs Thursday in L.A. claiming Gravy’s vastly fashionable “Betty (Get Money)” makes use of an impersonated model of his personal voice from 1987’s “Never Gonna Give You Up.”
In the docs, obtained by TMZ, Astley says Gravy and his producers — together with Dillon Francis — “conspired to incorporate a deliberate and practically indistinguishable imitation of Mr. Astley’s voice all through the track.” He’s additionally suing Nick Seeley (aka Popnick), the vocal impersonator.
Astley says he by no means gave Gravy, or anybody concerned in “Betty (Get Money),” permission to make use of or impersonate his voice — and since Gravy did so, he is spoiled any future probability for Rick to collaborate with one other artist sooner or later.
We ought to say, nonetheless, Gravy did license the instrumental from Astley’s ’80s hit … simply not his voice.
What’s extra … Astley’s lawsuit factors to some examples the place Gravy allegedly claimed he knew he was in murky territory for impersonating Rick, together with an interview with Billboard the place he stated he “principally remade” Rick’s voice, “as a result of it makes it simpler legally.”
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“Never Gonna Give You Up” was an enormous hit for Astley, taking pictures to the #1 spot. “Betty” has been Gravy’s most profitable track to date — reaching Gold within the U.S., Canada and Australia.
Astley is suing for hundreds of thousands of {dollars}.