Dua Lipa sued by ‘talk box’ musician in latest Levitating lawsuit

Dua Lipa is facing a new federal lawsuit in Los Angeles from musician Bosko Kante, who claims the British pop star and her label Warner Music Group never received his permission to include his “talk box” recording in remixes of her song Levitating.

Kante said in the lawsuit that the use of his performance on three remixes of Lipa’s hit song infringed his copyright, citing an oral agreement that the part Kante created with his wearable electronic device be used only in the song’s original recording.

The lawsuit filed on Monday (July 31) said Kante is entitled to more than US$20 million (S$26.7 million) in profit from the infringing music.

Representatives for Kante, Lipa and WMG did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Tuesday.

Lipa has already faced two other copyright lawsuits over Levitating. A court complaint from reggae group Artikal Sound System was dismissed in June. A separate lawsuit by songwriters Sandy Linzer and L. Russell Brown is ongoing.

Kante created the ElectroSpit Talk Box, a device worn around the neck and wired to a phone or synthesiser that can make a user’s vocal vibrations sound like musical instruments. Kante’s website said he has played the Talk Box on songs by musicians including rappers Kanye West, Big Boi and J. Cole.

The lawsuit said producer Stephen Kozmeniuk approached Kante in 2019 about creating a talk-box track to use on Levitating. Kante said they verbally agreed to a licence stipulating that his recording would only appear on the original track and could not be sampled or reused.

Levitating was released on Dua Lipa’s hit 2020 album “Future Nostalgia.” The song spent 77 weeks on Billboard’s Hot 100 US singles chart, peaking at No. 2 in 2021.

Kante’s complaint said Lipa reused his work without permission on three “Levitating” remixes — one by DJ The Blessed Madonna featuring pop star Madonna and rapper Missy Elliott, a second featuring rapper DaBaby, and a third that Lipa performed at the American Music Awards.