Joyner Lucas is going through a federal lawsuit in California after reposting a VladTV interview clip to his social media with out permission or credit score, allegedly to spice up his personal visibility.

Vlad accuses the rapper of copyright infringement for sharing a video from VladTV’s interview sequence. The clip options comic Aries Spears mocking British rap and was initially titled “Aries Spears Clowns British Rappers: That S**t Sounds Ridiculous! (Part 12).”

According to the lawsuit, Lucas uploaded the five-minute section to his @joynerlucas account on X on July 6. The submitting claims he cropped out the VladTV watermark earlier than sharing it together with his 1.5 million followers.

The put up shortly gained traction, pulling in 4.4 million views, 2,800 reposts and 20,000 likes earlier than X eliminated it in response to a Digital Millennium Copyright Act takedown request.

DJ Vlad, whose actual identify is Vlad Lyubovny, owns Hot In Here, Inc., the guardian firm of VladTV. His attorneys argue that Lucas knowingly used the copyrighted materials to drive visitors to his account and promote his model.

The lawsuit says Joyner Lucas “encouraged” others to share the video, which allegedly led to additional unauthorized distribution. It additionally claims the rapper income from elevated engagement on his social media, utilizing viral posts to advertise music and merchandise.

Before submitting the lawsuit, Hot In Here says it tried to resolve the problem out of court docket. Vlad was prepared to drop any potential authorized motion in return for an interview with Joyner Lucas. However, negotiations reportedly fell aside after Lucas’s supervisor, Dhruv Joshi, despatched an “expletive-filled text message” to VladTV’s authorized crew from Joyner Lucas himself.

“Dear vlad…. Suck my d##okay. Call your legal professional and do no matter it’s a must to do. I wasn’t ever doing an interview with you earlier than on this lifetime and your def not a getting an interview now. So settle your authorized issues nevertheless you wish to settle them p##sy. I all the time thought you was a b##ch and this simply confirms the form of b##ch you might be. No manner on this lifetime or the subsequent will I ever enable somebody such as you to attempt to extort me out of an interview. You acquired me all the way in which f##ked up.

Vlad is searching for as much as $150,000 in statutory damages, authorized charges and a everlasting injunction blocking Lucas from utilizing any VladTV content material sooner or later. It additionally desires a full accounting of any income Lucas might have earned from the put up.

VladTV, which boasts over six million YouTube subscribers, is acknowledged for its in-depth interviews with artists, comedians, and Hip-Hop figures. The platform has change into a serious outlet for commentary and cultural dialogue within the style.

Joyner Lucas is a platinum-selling, Worcester, Massachusetts native identified for collaborations with Will Smith, Chris Brown, Timbaland, Lil Baby, Future, Eminem and others.

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