Rauw Alejandro Faces Lawsuit for Use of Samples in His Album Saturno
The lawsuit against Rauw Alejandro was filed by BM Records and claims that the Puerto Rican used samples from several of DJ Playero songs.
A company that claims to own legendary reggaeton producer DJ Playero's catalog is suing Puerto Rican superstar Rauw Alejandro for copyright infringement, according to Billboard.
The lawsuit, filed Thursday, August 21, by BM Records, a Florida-based reggaeton label and distributor, alleges that the artist, whose real name is Raul Alejandro Ocasio Ruiz, used music samples from several of Playero’s songs on his hit 2022 album, “Saturno,” without the proper licenses.
According to the company, several songs on the album—which debuted at No. 25 on the Billboard 200 in November 2022 and spent 28 weeks on the chart—contain unauthorized samples of songs by Playero, a mainstay of the genre known for working with artists like Daddy Yankee.
The songs specifically singled out in the lawsuit are:
“As such, the continued exploitation of Saturno infringes the copyright in Playero’s works owned by BM.”
The lawsuit accuses Alejandro of violating the Copyright Act and seeks damages of up to $150,000 for each infringing song. BM Records is also filing charges against Sony Music Latin and the independent label Duars Entertainment, responsible for the publication of Saturno.
A Licensing Conflict
A crucial element that complicates the case is that DJ Playero himself is credited on several of the Saturno tracks mentioned in the lawsuit. Furthermore, when the album was released, Playero enthusiastically promoted it on his social media.
Representatives for Playero, Alejandro, and the artist's label did not respond to Billboard's inquiries about whether it was the producer himself who authorized the use of the samples. If so, the real dispute at the heart of this lawsuit could be between Playero and BM Records over who has the right to license his catalog.
This situation is reminiscent of a similar lawsuit filed by BM Records in 2021 against Bad Bunny. In that case, the company alleged that the artist's Billboard Hot 100 hit "Safaera" sampled three of Playero's songs without a license.
At the time, Playero issued a statement distancing himself from the lawsuit, stating that he knew nothing about it and that it was a "beautiful feeling" to hear a song on the radio that sampled his work. Bad Bunny ultimately reached an out-of-court settlement with BM Records in 2023.
The outcome of this new lawsuit could have significant implications for sampling practices in the reggaeton industry.