Jay-Z and his Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life producer Timbaland are facing a whopping $2 million lawsuit over alleged copyright infringement on the track “Paper Chase.” According to TMZ, the lawsuit was filed by plaintiff Ernie Hines. Although the 1998 album Vol. 2 is one of Jay-Z’s most popular, Hines claims he only recently heard the song for the first time. The lawsuit, which is also against Roc-A-Fella Records and Sony Music, states Jay-Z and Timbaland used a sample of one of Hines’s soul songs from 1969 without his permission.
The soul track in question is “Help Me Put Out the Flame (In My Heart).” Hines says he never gave permission for its use and was never given any money.
Although it seems unlikely that he didn’t hear Jay-Z’s song until 20 years later, Hines is 81-years-old and says he doesn’t listen to rap music. The credits on the track “Paper Chase” do explicitly state that “Help Me Put Out the Flame (In My Heart)” was used as a sample, which doesn’t particularly help Jay-Z’s case. Hines claims that he’s entitled to a large sum of money because the song has been played on many platforms, which explains why the lawsuit is listed for over $2 million.
