Fame comes with a price. When famous, one of the prices is that everyone seemingly wants something from you, and in some cases, that “everyone” is your family. Many celebrities have become estranged from their families due to the demands they placed upon them. This happened to Prince in a different way. His half-sister, Lorna Nelson, sued him in 1987 over his song, “U Got The Look”.
Videos by American Songwriter
Prince and Lorna Nelson shared the same father. But given this story, it seems the two didn’t consider each other as tight-knit siblings. In the 80s, Nelson was pursuing a music career of her own. However, given that her half-brother was Prince, her success was overshadowed. Consequently, Lorna Nelson sued Prince for copyright infringement.
How Prince Came Out of the Legal Battle Unscathed
In 1987, Nelson sued Prince, her brother, and her father. The suit was filed because his single, “U Got the Look”, allegedly stole lyrics from her track, “What’s Cooking In This Book”. Nelson filed the charges in the U.S. District Court in Minnesota, and the court proceedings went on to last roughly two years.
According to UPI, Nelson sued her half-brother because she thought the lyric “U sho’ ‘nuf do be cooking in my book” ripped off her lyric “What’s cooking in this book / What’s cooking in this book.” To the average eye, there are some similarities. However, US District Judge David Doty didn’t see them, as he dismissed the case in the appeals court.
Following the verdict, the appeals court wrote that “in this case, the trial court carefully studied the lyrics involved and determined that reasonable minds could not differ as to the absence of substantial similarity.”
“The trial judge could properly determine the matter of substantial similarity as a matter of law and did so by granting defendants’ motion to dismiss the copyright count on the ground that it failed to state a claim for infringing use,” the court said. “On review, this court cannot conclude that a mistake has been committed by such a ruling.”
Prince did not pay his half-sister a single cent. Allegedly, Lorna Nelson tried to have the case heard by the U.S. Supreme Court, but that action ultimately failed. Nelson passed away in 2006, and given that Prince passed away in 2016, she did not receive any funds from his incredibly lucrative estate.
Prince And Lotusflow3r.com Make History With “One Night… Three Venues” via Getty Images
Leave a Reply
Only members can comment. Become a member. Already a member? Log in.