The finger-pointing game has begun in the wake of this year's Electric Daisy Carnival.
Although any legal repercussions in regards to the festival that took place this weekend have yet to be determined, we're keeping our eye on the whole thing -- mostly because, let's face it, music and legal action are frequent bedfellows.
The biggest music lawsuit saw far this year? It involves Eminem's song "Lose Yourself," and the Chrysler corporation using it for commercials. Audi's new commercials, turns out, feature a strikingly similar song -- and Em's people have decided to duke the whole matter out in court.
Lawsuits just happen -- perhaps more than ever before in our now very litigious present. Some have merit, sure. But others are just plain frivolous. Those that gain notoriety usually do so because of size, ridiculousness or odd subject matter.
Either way, we've decided to take a look at the top 10 most interesting music lawsuits of all time. We had a lot to choose from. But these are the legal proceedings that are accompanied by the best stories.
10. Mattel v. Aqua, 1997. Aqua's hit "Barbie Girl" was all over the
radio that year, and Mattel took notice -- and offense. Claiming that the lyrics,
which describe Barbie as a "blonde bimbo," tarnished Barbie's
image and infringed upon copyright, Mattel sued. The case was promptly
dismissed, though; a judge in the case stated, no joke, "the parties are advised to
chill."
9. Slipknot v. Burger King, 2005. When Burger King released an ad
featuring a heavy metal band made up of chickens wearing masks
(dubiously dubbed "Coq Roq"), Slipknot threatened legal action -- because
they are of course the only band to ever don masks*. Burger King
responded with legal action of their own, demanding that a Miami federal
court exempt them from any lawsuits, from Slipknot or anyone else, over
the Coq Roq ad.
(* For those too dim to realize that we're kidding, we officially state
that we are, in fact, kidding. Don't sue us, please. We're writers, and
we're broke. )
8. Jackson Browne v. Ohio Republican Party, 2008. Ohio Republicans
should've seen this one coming, as Browne has famously campaigned for
left-wing political candidates for years. And yet, despite this being fairly common
knowledge, the Ohio Republican Party put out an anti-Obama television ad in
2008 that played Browne's "Running on Empty" in the background. Browne sued, of course. He also won.
7. Joe Jackson v. pretty much everyone, 2009-ongoing. Michael Jackson had barely been
buried before his estranged father began suing everyone within reach. Joe Jackson sued Dr. Conrad Murray, AEG Entertainment, Michael's estate
and probably a few more people, too. The legal proceedings were given
a collective side-eye by the world at large, due to the fact that Joe's
relationship with his son was strained at best. At press time, Joe
Jackson is himself being sued for releasing a perfume with Michael's
name on it. Will the litigious madness ever end? Probably not. Michael's life was a
circus; his death has been no different.
6. GAYNGS v. C.J. Starbuses, 2010. When indie-rock supergroup GAYNGS stopped for the night en route to their gig at Austin City Limits in
2010, they woke to find their tour bus -- and all the equipment in it --
missing. Understandably, the band freaked out, assuming that the bus
had been stolen. They were forced to cancel their ACL gig as a result. Turns out what really happened was a bizarre chain of events that began when GAYNGS were late in paying their bill to C.J. Starbuses, the company
that owned their bus. As a result, the company called their driver in the
wee hours of the morning and ordered him to drive the bus back to the
company's Nashville headquarters without notifying the band. GAYNGS, in turn,
sued -- and won a six-figure settlement.
