Rick Astley has settled a lawsuit over vocal impersonation with rapper Yung Gravy.
Astley originally accused the rapper of using an unauthorised imitation of his voice on the single “Betty (Get Money),” back in January.
Few details of the settlement are known, however, Yung Gravy’s attorney filed papers with LA Superior Court on Tuesday stating that the case was now resolved.
Yung Gravy’s song heavily features the iconic strains of Astley’s 1987 mega-hit “Never Gonna Give You Up.”
Astley claimed that only the song's instrumental track was licensed, not his voice.
According to the lawsuit:
“A license to use the original underlying musical composition does not authorise the stealing of the artist’s voice in the original recording.
“Instead, they resorted to theft of Mr. Astley’s voice without a license and without agreement.”
The lawsuit also stated that Yung Gravy and his producers “conspired to include a deliberate and nearly indistinguishable imitation of Mr. Astley’s voice throughout the song.”
Astley also sued Nick Seeley (aka Popnick), the vocal impersonator. Seeley posted on Instagram at the time claiming that he wanted his vocal to “sound identical” to Astley’s.
“Never Gonna Give You Up,” written and produced by Stock Aitken Waterman, was Astley’s debut single in 1987.
It reached the top of the charts in a staggering 25 countries, including the US and UK. It peaked at number two in Ireland.
Astley has enjoyed a notable revival in popularity in recent years, culminating in a main stage appearance at this year’s Glastonbury festival.
