Two producers claim The Weeknd ripped them off and stole one of their songs to make his single “Call Out My Name.”
Suniel Fox and Henry Strange are seasoned producers who have worked with prominent artists like Kanye West, Lady Gaga, Drake, A$AP Rocky, Lil Wayne, Logic, and Mike Posner.
The pair claim they made the instrumental song “VIBEKING” in April of 2015. They released the single around April of 2017.
According to their complaint, Suniel Fox and Henry Strange linked up with The Weeknd’s DJ, PNDA, in 2015. He urged the producers to send him the “VIBEKING” track, so he could let The Weeknd hear it.
The superstar singer heard the track and loved it. In fact, in 2015, The Weeknd replied to PNDA and said the “s#### fiiiire.” In 2016, PNDA said that although The Weeknd loved the track, nothing ever happened.
A short time later, PNDA told Henry Strange, “Just gonna tell [The Weeknd] that our production team wrote the track. Cool? Or u have another idea? Just don’t wanna say ‘hey, [Strange] wrote this’ when he doesn’t know u.” Strange responded to PNDA that “[The Weeknd] knows me. Say both. [Strange] with Ponytail you met on Drake tour. Who is part of our production team.”
The real problems started on March 30th, 2018. That’s when The Weeknd released his six-song EP, My Dear Melancholy.
The first song on the EP is the track “Call Out My Name,” which Suniel Fox and Henry Strange claim is derived directly from their song, “VIBEKING.”
The producers and writers listed on the song are The Weeknd, Frank Duke’s, and JAAR, while Suniel Fox and Henry Strange are left out. “Call Out My Name” was released as a single, went platinum, and has since garnered over 700 million views on YouTube.
Suniel Fox and Henry Strange claim they never received or sent a licensing agreement to let The Weeknd use “VIBEKING.”
They are suing The Weeknd, Frank Duke’s, JAAR, Nico, XO, and Universal Music Group for an undisclosed amount.
The pair want a judge to prevent The Weeknd from publicly performing, publishing, distributing, and exploiting “Call Out My Name” until an agreement or verdict is reached.
Suniel Fox and Henry Strange are also seeking all of the profits from “Call Out My Name” as well as legal fees.