‘On the case’ are the words from lawyers Stephen Drummond Esq. and JoAnn Squillace regarding the use of a sample from “Ghetto People Song” produced by Tony Rebel without permission by French Montana.
Last year WMV first carried the story about Moroccan born U.S. rapper French Montana and Harry Fraud’s use of samples from the 1996 Jamaican reggae hit “Ghetto People Song.” The song was written and produced by Patrick Barrett popularly known as Tony Rebel, his cousin Steven Lindo and Everton Blender. The sample appears on the song “Higher” from the collaborative album “Montega” released last June independently by Montana’s Coke Boys record label.
After we brought the use of the song to the attention of Tony Rebel, he told World Music Views exclusively that he was not aware of the sample, even though it was released on his Flames Record label. Upon hearing Montana and Fraud’s “Higher” with Blender’s voice echoing and the distinctive horns, he initially responded in shock by saying, “me a send it to my lawyer dem a New York right now.” He then contemplated, “I wonder if somebody clear it, who would be the one to clear it?” he said contemplatively.
Since then no court documents have been filed but Queens New York based law firm Drummond and Squillace, said that they are on the case quietly.
“We have the privilege of being Mr. Rebel’s attorney for a number of years now. I won’t comment too much regarding that case,” the Jamaican born attorney told WMV exclusively.
With a major settlement under his belt against Miley Cyrus in a $300 million dollar claim on behalf of 90s deejay Flourgon, he added that quiet pursuit to find remedy is his preferred mode of action in copyright cases.
“We been in this space for quite a while and some of them are quietly handled and we prefer the ones that are quietly handled. It’s a good space to be in when the cases can be quietly handled, and our hope here with the one involved in French Montana on behalf of Mr. Rebel and the others is that we can reach an amicable resolution to the satisfaction of all parties and that’s what we are pursuing,” he added.
From his New York offices he gave kudos to Tony Rebel as an example for other Jamaican acts to follow regarding their business while at the same time chiding artists for not focusing on their business. “We have a tremendous amount of respect for Tony Rebel, we have a tremendous amount of respect for his daughter Jahyuhdah (also Tony Rebels Lawyer). Tony Rebel is the epitome of the example of what more artists need to do in Jamaica. Understanding the business component of what they are doing,” he said.
“The business component of being an entertainer is important because that’s how they support their families.”
Stephen Drummond
His formulaic advice for Jamaica artists is, “the first thing that you do after you decide your song is so good, right after you finish your final cut your next step is to go protect. So I said protect, then perform in order to preserve and Tony Rebel understands that concept very well.
Watch the full interview with Stephen Drummond Esq. and JoAnn Squillace here.
