George Clinton files lawsuit to get back ownership of catalog

Photo: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Friends of Hudson River Park

Funk pioneer George Clinton is suing to get the rights to his music catalog. According to Variety, the musician has sued music producer Armen Boladian and his Bridgeport Music company for $100 million in copyright ownership. 

In the lawsuit, filed in a Florida District Court on March 12, Clinton alleges that Boladian illegally obtained the copyrights to over 90% of his music catalog. Also, the lawsuit claims Boladian and several of his companies engaged in a “decades long scheme” that involved forging his signature on deals that surrendered his rights to his music. 

As part of the fraud, which includes withholding tens of millions of dollars in royalties, Boladian has accrued ownership of roughly 90 percent of Clinton’s catalog, according to the complaint. Clinton and his attorney Ben Crump held a press conference in front of Harlem’s Apollo Theatre to announce the lawsuit.

“These songs we’re talking about is my history,” said the Parliament-Funkadelic member. “I have to fight for them, I have to make sure that I did not do all of this my whole life and have my family here, not get what’s due to them, what they inherit. We don’t have a chance to pass down 40 acres and mules to our families. We do not have the copyrights for the songs. So I’m here along with Ben and partners to make sure that Armen does not get what we worked so hard for.”