‘Telekinesis’ Copyright Lawsuit Against Travis Scott, SZA and Future Moves Forward

A US judge has allowed a copyright lawsuit over the song “TELEKINESIS,” as recorded by Travis Scott, SZA and Future, to move forward, albeit with some alterations.

Background:

• The case was filed by singer-songwriter Victory Boyd and her publishing company The Songs of Glory in January 2025.

• She alleges that Scott and his collaborators copied her demo track “Like The Way It Sounds” to create “TELEKINESIS.”

• “TELEKINESIS” was released on Scott’s 2023 album Utopia, and has racked up more than 537 million streams on Spotify.

• Boyd says she wrote the lyrics and recorded a demo in 2019.

• The lawsuit says Kanye West, AKA Ye, initially provided the chords and melodies that inspired the demo.

• The suit claims West shared the demo with Scott, who it’s alleged used it to create “TELEKINESIS.”

• Though Boyd was listed as a co-writer in the song’s metadata, she claims she did not know it had been commercially released, and intended to finish and release her original version herself via her deal with Roc Nation.

Case to answer:

• Judge Mary Kay Vykocil filed her opinion on Monday March 9, ruling that Boyd’s core copyright infringement case can proceed.

• Though the defendants claimed Boyd’s copyright registrations were invalid because she had knowingly omitted West as a co-author, Judge Vykocil ruled they had come “nowhere near” proving so.

• She did, however, dismiss some parts of the case, including Boyd’s demand for a full accounting of profits, and copyright claims filed by The Songs of Glory, as the company does not appear on any of Boyd’s copyright registrations.

• She also ruled that because Boyd’s copyright registration became effective in December 2023, she can’t seek statutory damages or attorney’s fees for alleged infringement before that date.