It’s not over, but as of now, Jay-Z is winning his case of preventing Dame Dash to profit from his music. Tuesday morning, a New York federal judge sided with Roc-A-Fella Records label owner Jay-Z after convincing them that his first album, Reasonable Doubt, should not be sold as an NFT by Dame Dash. NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, are valuable digital assets that cannot be replicated or traded.
On June 18, the label sued its co-founder Dame Dash for allegedly attempting to sell virtual ownership of the “Reasonable Doubt” copyrights. Dash denied allegations, but according to the complaint, the investor platform SuperFarm made an announcement that read, “SuperFarm is proud to announce, in collaboration with Damon Dash, the auction of Damon‘s ownership of the copyright to Jay-Z’s first album Reasonable Doubt. This marks a new milestone in the history of NFT’s, entitling the new owner to future revenue generated by the unique asset.”
The complaint also stated the date to auction off the album as an NFT had been set for June 23-25, but SuperFarm called it off after the Roc-A-Fella label sent them a warning letter expressing their concerns about Dash’s pursuit of a sale. Even though Dash’s defense says he only attempted to sell his Roc-A-Fella stake, not the rights to Reasonable Doubt, the court still issued a temporary restraining order.
On the hearing held on Tuesday morning, U.S. District Court Judge John Cronan agreed with Roc-A-Fella, stating that the label owns the copyright to the album.
This court hearing only blocked the sale, not the case. The lawsuit will go on as Cronan scheduled the following hearing for next Thursday.
