Beyonce and Chloe Bailey are facing a lawsuit over alleged copyright infringement, filed by artist Melvin Moore. The lawsuit, filed in New York, accuses Beyoncé’s Parkwood Entertainment of using Moore’s work without permission in several tracks from Bailey’s album Trouble in Paradise, released in August.
Moore, who goes by the stage name 4Rest (Forest), claims that he contributed significant original lyrics, melodies, and creative direction to songs featured on Bailey’s album. The tracks in question, including “Favorite,” “Might As Well,” and “Same Lingerie,” were allegedly commercially released without his consent.
In the court documents, Moore accuses Bailey of disregarding a DMCA violation and cease and desist notice he sent before promoting the song “Same Lingerie” to her Instagram followers, which number over 260,000. Moore claims that “Same Lingerie” was inspired by his own experiences in a relationship, and he recorded the original demos based on the emotional struggles of a woman following a past relationship.
Moore is seeking $5 million in punitive damages for each song, in addition to statutory damages of up to $150,000 per infringement, $25,000 per DMCA violation, and compensatory and punitive damages for willful copyright infringement, fraudulent misrepresentation, and civil conspiracy. He is also requesting a jury trial.
The lawsuit names not only Parkwood Entertainment but also Columbia Records, Music Entertainment, Sony Music Entertainment, ABC Corporation, and various unnamed parties. Moore alleges that his contributions to the songs were misappropriated, falsely registered under others’ names, and exploited for commercial gain across multiple platforms without authorization.
A source close to the situation revealed that Beyoncé is upset by the situation, stating, “Beyoncé is incensed that it has gone this far.” They also mentioned that communication between Bailey and Parkwood Entertainment had been deteriorating in the weeks leading up to the lawsuit. The source further indicated concerns about being involved in a legal dispute over intellectual property theft, particularly after the damaging impact the Marvin Gaye lawsuit had on Robin Thicke’s career.
