Dr. Dre has succeeded in blocking Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene from using his music in any context having to do with her political career.
According to Billboard, Greene’s attorneys have formally acknowledged a cease and desist letter sent by Dre’s lawyers on Monday (January 9). The response was submitted prior to the 5:00 p.m. deadline on Wednesday (January 11) and stopped short of admitting any wrongdoing on the Georgia lawmaker’s part.
“We are in receipt of your correspondence of January 9, 2023,” the letter read. “On behalf of Congresswoman Greene, please be advised that no further use of Mr. Young’s copyright will be made by a political committee or via social media outlet she controls.”
The lawyers added that their response should not be seen as “an admission of any fact or waiver of any rights or defenses” — a statement that would come in handy in Marjorie Taylor Greene’s defense in the event that Dr. Dre still decides to move forward with a lawsuit.
In the scathing original cease and desist letter, Dre’s lawyer Howard E. King admonished Greene for failing to follow laws laid out by the U.S. Constitution, after the controversial lawmaker shared a video via Twitter on Monday that saw her walking through Congress as Dr. Dre’s 1999 hit played in the background.
Once he caught wind of the post, the multi-platinum artist told TMZ that his music had been used without his prior consent, saying: “I don’t license my music to politicians, especially someone as divisive and hateful as this one.”
King’s letter reiterated Dr. Dre’s disapproval and accused Marjorie Taylor Greene of “wrongfully exploiting [‘Still D.R.E.’] through the various social media outlets to promote [her] divisive and hateful political agenda.”
“The United States Copyright Act says a lot of things, but one of the things it says is that you can’t use someone else’s song for your political campaign promotions unless you get permission from the owner of the copyright in the song, a step you failed to take.”
Minutes after Greene’s video was posted, Dr. Dre’s team was able to have the post disabled by Twitter.
Marjorie Taylor Greene’s initial reaction to Aftermath boss taking issue with her use of his music was much more irreverent than the official letter sent by her attorneys.
“While I appreciate the creative chord progression,” she wrote in a statement to TMZ, which she shared on Twitter. “I would never play your words of violence against women and police officers, and your glorification of the thug life and drugs.”
Marjorie Taylor Greene gained national attention in 2021 after Democrats in the House of Representatives demanded that she be removed from Congress over a number of controversial statements made on Facebook between 2018 and 2019.
The move came after a CNN investigation uncovered a number of posts in which Greene advocated for the execution of several prominent Democrats. The Georgia congresswoman, who was elected to the House in 2020, also made a number of antisemitic and anti-Catholic statements, as well as posts supporting the idea that the 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida had been staged.
While she remains a Congressional representative for the state of Georgia, House Democrats were able to have Marjorie Taylor Green stripped of all of her legislative committee assignments.
Sometimes I wonder who goes to these rallies and writes down the songs they play for 30 seconds when somebody gets on the stage ? Do they start sending emails to rappers and saying guess who played your song at a rally of 100 people in some small town ? These woke people have no lives.
it was an ad that went out on the internet not some rally in a small town.
Playing music in person of anyone’s isn’t illegal. It becomes an issue when you put someone’s song in your ad without permission. I’m conservative, so I support conservative ideals and politicians for the most part (I think both parties suck). With that said, again, In this case, she can’t use someone’s song in an ad or video she personally posts without permission. Had she reposted a clip someone made of her with the song, I doubt it’d be an issue, because who do you sue? Some nobody?
She needs to follow the laws she wants everyone else to follow . Doesn’t matter if it’s played a half a second. Using someone’s copyright music without their consent is against the law, she of all people should know that. Besides she knows Dr.Dre would have never given here consent to use it….. “They love our rhythm but not our blues.” Why don’t she stick to the music of those who she represents? What honky tonk ain’t her thing? Plenty of it out there.
Still too scared to go to concerts so that you may not finally get some pussy and stfu, I see.
Who are “these woke people”?
I wasnt aware it was for a commercial. Most of these cease and desist orders are from country and pop singers when they play the songs at rallies. They literally play the song 30 seconds as someone walks up to the podium. I personally dont consider that to qualify as an endorsement.
When the song is as wildly popular and as IMMEDIATELY recognizable as Still Dre, it can absolutely look like an endorsement. Why do you think Dr Dre gave a shit in the first place??
The problem with people like MTG is that she wants the right to be a bigot, without any of the consequences of being a bigot. Such as musicians and artists she likes wanting nothing to do her or her message whatsoever.
Oh shut the fuck up. “You’re a bigot! Omg, you’re a NAZI!!!”. So sick of these buzz words that mean nothing anymore. FYI, fuck the LGBTq community.
You can play anyone’s songs at a rally. People can sue all they want, they can’t win. You can’t however use someone’s music in an ad or entertainment. A live show can play anyone’s music, especially if the show, in this case we’re talking rallies, are free and no profit. Same way Rick Ross was able to use In Da Club beat to make a remix and put it out online. He wasn’t selling it, so it was okay. However, you can’t take peoples copyright music and upload it yourself either, BUT you can play it on a livestream, just like live broadcasts can’t be in trouble if someone drives by a camera playing a song from the radio.
Bigot lol. As other comment said. That word has no meaning anymore. Now go virtue signal about how Americans are oppressed through racism, how slavery was evil, and you love eletric car batteries mmwith cobalt mined by pre teen African children who die young. Don’t forget your slave produced iPhone and other consumer eletric goods! Imagine calling someone a bigot when you use electronics produced by slaves lol. Seems you support slavery, but think someone’s politics are evil. No bitch, you’re just a hypocrite. Again. Go buy your slave made junk!
Ther is something wrong with you.
People like you are the problem in this country. I would hate to be you
Do you just spout bullshit without reading the fuckin article?
Bitch dead ass acting like republicans wouldn’t want to see the war on drugs and the ‘thug’ lifestyle continue, so they can keep filling up their slave labor centers that they call prisons.
You would never play his words, except when you did.
There is literally a lyric in the song that says “still not lovin’ police.” Stupid bitch. lol
Hell yeah, lock em up. That fentanyl shit killing everybody in my hood.
You realize that they don’t actually want that shit to stop, right? They can lock mfs up, and believe me lots of mfs need to be locked up, but they don’t want that shit to stop.
Hateful and decisive she just trying to be clever
Didn’t scott storch make the beat, and Jay-Z write the song?
MTG’s hypocrisy is on full display in her response to Dr. Dre. The very essence of her mission in congress supported the violence against, and death of, “cops” and government officials on 1//6/21. Additionally, she has trolled, even in person, traumatized mass shooting survivors; taunting them about the whether the incident actually happened. MTG is certainly on the most dangerous “drug” of narcissism-driven conspiracy theories and aggregation of her actions are definitively “thug life!!”
MTG’s hypocrisy is on full display in her response to Dr. Dre. The very essence of her mission in congress supported the violence against, and death of, “cops” and government officials on 1/6/21. Additionally, she has trolled, even in person, traumatized mass shooting survivors; taunting them about the whether the incident actually happened. MTG is certainly on the most dangerous “drug” of narcissism-driven conspiracy theories and aggregation of her actions are definitively “thug life!!”