A recent lawsuit accuses Drake of plagiarizing the hook from his hit song “Janice STFU,” a claim vehemently denied by his team. The legal action, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California on Oct. 16, alleges that the chorus was originally penned by Aviel (Avi) Hirschfield, a Grammy Award-winning hip-hop artist and producer who had collaborated with Drake in the past.
According to the lawsuit, Hirschfield drew inspiration for the lyrics and melody while driving a borrowed Maybach to Seattle, listening to “I Follow Rivers” by Lykke Li, an artist Drake had previously sampled. Hirschfield purportedly recorded a demo with his vocals over a track produced by FnZ, a duo known for their work with Drake, and shared it with various individuals in the hopes that it would reach Drake.
The lawsuit further claims that when Hirschfield heard Drake’s rendition of “Janice STFU,” he was shocked to hear Drake performing the same chorus he had recorded and circulated to producers associated with Drake. Drake’s team has refuted these allegations, asserting their complete falsehood.
The comparison between the two tracks can be made by listening to the leaked version created by Hirschfield online and watching Drake’s official music video for “Janice STFU.” The song debuted at No. 1 on both the Billboard Global 200 and the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, marking Drake’s 14th chart-topping track and surpassing Michael Jackson’s record for the most No. 1 hits by a male solo artist.
Drake even hosted a series of events to apologize to individuals named Janice, who were affected by the song. Despite these developments, Hirschfield was not credited as a co-writer and was denied a share of the song’s profits. Drake’s representatives have stated that he has no association with or knowledge of Hirschfield, firmly denying the allegations.
Universal Music Group, also implicated in the lawsuit, has not provided a response to CBC News’ request for comment.