Photo: Kevin Winter/Getty for The Recording Academy; Dave M. Benett/Getty for Victoria & Albert Museum
Beyoncésays she is setting the record straight.
The Grammy Award winner, 41, responded toRight Said Fred’s “erroneous and incredibly disparaging” accusation that she never asked permission to sample their 1991 classic “I’m Too Sexy” for her track “Alien Superstar” in a statement shared with PEOPLE.
“Permission was not only granted for its use, but they publicly spoke of their gratitude for being on the album,” Bey said in the rare statement.
She noted that her team asked the publisher for permission in May, and it was granted in June, before they were paid for the usage in August.
Beyoncé also explained that the British brother pop duo, Fred and Richard Fairbrass, also received a “co-writer credit” on the song, which recently appeared on her seventh studio albumRenaissance.
Beyoncé.Mason Poole
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As the song is mostly made up of their composition, Right Said Fred owns more of the song than any other single writer. “This accusation is false,” Beyoncé concluded.
Right Said Fred previously alleged that theDestiny’s Childalumfailed to reach out for permissionbefore the song was released during an interview withThe Sun.
“Normally the artist approaches us but Beyoncé didn’t because she is such an arrogant person she just had probably thought ‘come and get me’ so we heard about it after the fact when you did,” they said. “But everyone else,DrakeandTaylor Swift, they came to us.”
Tobi Corney/Photoshot/Getty Images.
They explained that artists using their music will usually send them a demo for approval before giving them a co-writer credit. “With this Beyoncé thing there are 22 writers it’s ridiculous, so we would get about 40 [percent],” the duo explained.
“The reason that is happening, we think, is because there is so little money now in the actual salespeople, like friends, golfing partners, engineers, bookers and the guy who brings the coke, they all want a cut,” they continued.
Beyoncé previouslyremoved a samplingofKelis' “Milkshake” from her song “Energy” after the Kaleidoscope artist claimed she heard about the song “the same way everyone else did,” adding: “It’s not a collab it’s theft.”
RELATED VIDEO: Beyoncé Releases Long-Awaited Seventh Studio Album Renaissance, Confirms LP Is a 3-Part Project
Renaissance, which has been billed as thefirst of a three-part project, marks Beyoncé’s first solo album in six years. She previously releasedDangerously in Love(2003),B’Day(2006),I Am… Sasha Fierce(2008),4(2011),Beyoncé(2013) andLemonade(2016), following her tenure with Destiny’s Child.
Renaissanceis now available for streaming and download.
source: people.com
