Black Panther’s Soundtrack Copyright Case Is Over

The copyright case against Black Panther‘s soundtrack and artists Kendrick Lamar and The Weeknd is officially over. Two years ago, Black Panther became the most successful MCU solo film after grossing over $1.34 billion worldwide ($700 million of which was made domestically, making it second to only Avengers: Endgame). Starring Chadwick Boseman as the titular superhero, Black Panther follows new king T’Challa as he grapples with the secrets of the past and decides the best way forward for his country, Wakanda. Black Panther received extremely positive reviews and became the first comic book film to be nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. In total, it won three Oscars, including Best Original Score.

Director Ryan Coogler enlisted Lamar to create a tie-in album, which was named Black Panther: The Album. It received great critical acclaim and even reached number 1 on the US Billboard 200. Lamar’s song with SZA, “All the Stars”, was nominated for Best Original Song at the Oscars, but it was “Pray For Me” that found itself at the center of a court case earlier this year. Experimental rock band Yeasayer sued Lamar and The Weeknd on the grounds that “Pray For Me” sampled parts of their song “Sunrise” without their permission.

According to Digital Music News, this case has come to an end after a slight delay. It was supposed to be brought to court in March, but the coronavirus pandemic postponed it. Nonetheless, court documents now say the plaintiffs (in this case, Yeasayer) have “confirmed to their satisfaction that no copyright infringement occurred [against Yeasayer] as The Weeknd created the soundtrack for Black Panther.” This means that the case has been dismissed, and neither have to assume any consequences.

With Black Panther in the rear-view window now, most fans are looking ahead to Black Panther 2, which is currently slated for May 2022. Coogler will return to write and direct, and Boseman will once again assume the role of T’Challa. Details are scarce at the moment, but the latest update suggested filming will begin in early 2021. While no one knows what the story will involve, many are excited to revisit Wakanda and see how it has changed following the events of Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame.

Music played such a vital part of Black Panther, and it will likely do the same for its sequel. Whether or not Lamar will return to craft a second album isn’t clear, but seeing as the first was such a major success, it wouldn’t be surprising if he did. Coogler and his entire team did such an excellent job of developing Wakanda and its culture, and it’ll be fascinating to see how they further expand it with Black Panther 2.