A United States federal judge has ruled that T.I.’s company must face a copyright lawsuit from producer Sir Jinx over the 2016 Dr. Dre collaboration “Dope.”
Jinx, a cousin of Dr. Dre who rose to prominence with Ice Cube in the 1980s, filed the suit last year. He is credited as a producer on the track and claims Grand Hustle LLC, T.I.’s company, released it without his approval, infringing his copyrights.
Judge declines early dismissal
Grand Hustle sought to have the case thrown out, arguing that Jinx had willingly contributed to the song and consented to its release. In a ruling dated Monday, Aug. 17, Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett said it was too soon to determine whether the company had obtained that consent.
“Whether a defendant used copyrighted material under an implied license is a fact-specific question not appropriate for resolution [at an early stage of the case],” the judge wrote.
Judge Garnett also declined to dismiss claims that Grand Hustle breached a contract with Jinx by releasing “Dope” without authorization. The decision is not final; it moves the case into discovery and potentially toward trial.
Attorneys for both sides did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday, Aug. 19.
From royalty dispute to infringement claim
Jinx broke out in the 1980s as a member of the hip-hop trio C.I.A. alongside Ice Cube and Kid Disaster. He later produced Ice Cube’s early albums and worked with Yo-Yo, Tone Loc, Xzibit and others.
T.I. released a video for “Dope” in 2016, with Dr. Dre listed as a producer after hinting earlier that he had been working with the rapper on the album Dime Trap. When that album arrived in 2018, “Dope” was not on the track list. The song has since drawn more than 19 million views on YouTube.
Jinx has pursued the dispute in multiple courts:
- He first sued Grand Hustle in state court in 2023.
- He filed again in federal court last year.
- The state case was dropped after a judge largely rejected it.
- The first federal case was dismissed over procedural defects.
Those earlier actions alleged he had not been paid proper royalties.
The latest version of the litigation argues that “Dope” was an independent copyrighted work created by Jinx and that it was infringed when the song was released without a deal in place.
“Plaintiff provided a copy of the work to defendant solely for evaluation and negotiation purposes in anticipation of entering into a business arrangement,” Jinx’s attorneys wrote in a March filing. “No written agreement governing use of the work was executed [but] defendant Hustle nevertheless proceeded to exploit the work commercially.”
Grand Hustle’s lawyers called the new claims an “eleventh-hour pivot” and said earlier versions of the case had admitted that Jinx fully cooperated with the release.
“He specifically alleged [in his earlier cases] that he provided ‘Dope’ to defendants for them to use, establishing the absolute defense of consent,” Grand Hustle’s attorneys wrote in a motion to dismiss the case.
They also argued that T.I. himself was a co-author and could authorize the release.
In Monday’s decision, Judge Garnett did not rule that Jinx had won anything. She said those issues could only be decided later, after evidence is gathered in discovery. But she wrote that if Jinx can later find proof, Grand Hustle potentially breached a quasi-contract by releasing “Dope” without approval.
“Plaintiff provided the song to defendant, defendant was aware that plaintiff expected to be paid for the song’s exploitation, and defendant exploited the song without paying plaintiff,” the judge wrote, recounting Jinx’s allegations. “Therefore, the motion [to dismiss] is denied.”
