A U.S. judge has ordered rapper LIL WAYNE to hand over accounts of the royalties he garnered from his latest album THA CARTER III to a folk singer who accuses the star of copyright infringement.
U.S. Magistrate Daniel Knowles III ordered the rapper on Wednesday (18Mar09) to turn in all financial information from the sales revenue of the 2008 disc.
In May 2008, musician Karma-Ann Swanepoel filed suit against the star claiming he didn’t have permission to sample her song Once in his album track I Feel Like Dying.
The lawsuit alleges the rapper’s record label, Cash Money Records, failed to seek permission to use a sample of Swanepoel’s song before millions of people downloaded it.
However, Lil Wayne’s legal states the track has had little financial or professional influence in the star’s career.
In legal documents, lawyer Shantell Payton writes, “Quite simply, I Feel Like Dying did nothing for Mr. Carter’s career.”