Drake Lawsuit Over ‘Janice STFU’ Dropped By Accuser Less Than Two Weeks Later
A songwriter has abruptly dropped a case claiming Drake's smash hit was “literally identical” — claims the star called “manufactured and baseless."
Drake's lawsuit alleging that songwriter Aviel Calev Hirschfield had stolen the chorus of his hit song "Janice STFU" has been abruptly dropped by the accuser less than two weeks after it was filed, according to a court filing obtained by Billboard. The case, which claimed that Drake's "Janice STFU" song shamelessly copied an unpublished demo Hirschfield allegedly sent to the song's producers, was filed on October 16.
Hirschfield's attorneys moved to voluntarily dismiss the case on October 27, citing no explanation in the court filings. The dismissal is "without prejudice," meaning Hirschfield could refile the lawsuit at a later date. Drake's representatives vehemently denied the allegations, calling them a "manufactured and baseless attempt to exploit Drake's name."
The lawsuit was significant because "Janice STFU" spent two weeks at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 and 20 weeks atop the Billboard Hot Rap Songs chart, which holds the record for Drake's longest-running No. 1 spot on that chart.
Written by urgent.news from Billboard's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
