Puerto Rico Supreme Court Revives Bad Bunny Lawsuit Over Voice Recording
At the center of the case is a 2015 recording by a former girlfriend
The Supreme Court of Puerto Rico has ruled that Bad Bunny must face a lawsuit from his former girlfriend over the use of her “Bad Bunny baby” voice recording on the song “Dos Mil 16” from his 2022 album, Un Verano Sin Ti.
Backstory:
Carliz De La Cruz Hernández recorded the phrase in 2015 while in a relationship with Bad Bunny, real name Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio.
Prior to the release of Un Verano Sin Ti, Bad Bunny’s representatives offered De La Cruz Hernández $2,000 as payment for the retroactive and future rights to the recording, as per Music Business Worldwide.
She rejected the offer.
The complaint alleges the recording was also played at various Bad Bunny concerts.
De La Cruz Hernández sued Bad Bunny and his label Rimas Entertainment in 2023, seeking at least USD $40 million in damages.
The ruling:
On July 8 the Supreme Court ruled De La Cruz Hernández may proceed with claims relating to “Dos Mil 16” under the territory’s Right of Publicity Act.
It also revived her claim under the Moral Rights of Authors Act, which had been dismissed by the lower courts.
The Court has sent the case back to a trial court in San Juan.
The Court upheld the lower court’s ruling that claims relating to the 2016 track “Pa Ti,” which also featured the voice recording, were barred by the statute of limitations.
👋 Disclosures & Transparency Block
This story was written with information from Music Business Worldwide.
We covered it because it’s news of a lawsuit involving a high-profile musician.
