John Cena is now grappling with a authorized showdown removed from the squared circle after being accused of lifting a jazz horn riff from a 1974 recording to create his signature WWE entrance anthem, “The Time Is Now.”

A lawsuit filed by Kim Schofield claims the monitor’s iconic brass hook was constructed from an unauthorized pattern of her late father Pete Schofield’s instrumental model of “The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia.”

The swimsuit names Cena, World Wrestling Entertainment, producer Jake One, TKO Group Holdings and music writer Pix-Russ music as defendants.

In the 32-page criticism, Kim Schofield accuses the group of “willful copyright infringement, fraudulent inducement, breach of contract and unjust enrichment.”

She alleges that Jake One looped and sampled the horn intro and outro of her father’s 1974 monitor, sections she says have been authentic compositions unrelated to the Bobby Russell-penned track.

The lawsuit says WWE started utilizing the beat in 2003, two years earlier than any licensing deal existed and did not disclose that reality throughout a later negotiation.

In 2017, WWE paid Schofield’s property $50,000 to settle the problem, claiming the monitor had restricted worth. At the identical time, the corporate was reportedly in talks to license the track for a Toyota industrial, a deal Schofield says was by no means disclosed to her.

Kim Schofield contends she was misled into signing the settlement whereas caring for her terminally unwell mom and hospitalized husband. She says she solely realized the complete extent of the pattern’s use after Jake One launched a 2021 video explaining how he created the beat.

The swimsuit additionally accuses WWE of breaching the 2017 settlement by releasing a brand new model of the track “Champ Is Here” that mimics the unique horns with synthesizers. According to the criticism, WWE additionally did not credit score Pete Schofield or his PS Records label on newer merchandise and DVD releases.

In addition to Cena and WWE, the lawsuit targets the property of Bobby Russell, particularly Pix-Russ music and Cynthia Jo Russell, for accumulating royalties on what Schofield alleges is her father’s authentic work. The criticism states they’d “no creative connection” to the sampled materials.

Schofield is asking the court docket to void the 2017 settlement, acknowledge her father because the rightful creator of the horn sections, and order the defendants to show over earnings.

She is looking for damages of as much as $150,000 per infringement, together with authorized charges and an injunction to cease additional use of the track.

Related