Florida rapper Kidd Wes is suing Childish Gambino for alleged copyright infringement on his Grammy-winning song “This Is America.” According to Pitchfork,  Wes claims that the Childish Gambino song “This Is America” infringes on the copyright of his 2016 song “Made in America.” Real name, Emelike Wesley Nwosuocha, filed his lawsuit May 6 in a New York federal court.

Along with Donald Glover,Wes has listed additional defendants in the lawsuit including “This Is America” co-writer Young Thug, “This Is America” producer Lüdwig Goransson, Kobalt Music, RCA Records, Sony Music Entertainment, Young Stoner Life Publishing LLC, 300 Entertainment, Atlantic Records, Warner Music Group, Roc Nation, Universal Music Publishing Group, and Warner Chappell Music.

Wes first uploaded “Made in America” to SoundCloud on September 11, 2016, which was then included on his album Eleven: The Junior Senior Year on May 24, 2017. Wes’ attorneys Imran H. Ansari and La’Shawn N. Thomas stated “The similarities between the two pieces of music are beyond coincidental, and amounts to infringement, as alleged in the complaint filed by our client, Emelike Nwosuocha, professionally known as Kidd Wes. Mr. Nwosuocha is confident in his claims, and simply seeks the credit and compensation he deserves for the unauthorized use of his music.”

He and his attorneys are also seeking damages from profit in many categories including record sales, ringtones, ringback tones, endorsements, increased goodwill, any and all music publisher, record master, and record incomes, and increased value in negotiating 360 deals with record companies.

Photo Credit: Sharon Alagna