Sep 6 - Timbaland, Jay-Z Sued Over 'Big Pimpin' Sample

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Timbaland, Jay-Z Sued Over 'Big Pimpin' Sample
Thursday, September 6, 2007
By: Kenny Rodriguez

Timbaland faces yet another lawsuit over uncleared samples – the Virginia producer is now being sued over a Jay-Z hit single recorded nearly a decade ago.

According to a Los Angeles lawsuit, Timbaland allegedly sampled from an obscure Middle Eastern record to produce the popular song, “Big Pimpin,” which features Jay-Z and Houston duo UGK.

Osama Admed Fahmy claims to be co-owner of the song “Khosara, Khosara,” recorded in 1957 by Egyptian musician Abdel Halim Hafez, and accuses Timbaland of lifting a portion of the song without copyright permission.

“Big Pimpin” was originally released on Jay-Z’s 1999 LP, “Vol. 3: Life & Times of S. Carter,” only to be re-recorded five years later alongside rock band Linkin Park on the mash-up EP, “Collision Course.”

Jay-Z, Timbaland, Linkin Park, and EMI Music Inc. are among those named as defendants in the lawsuit.

Timbaland – whose production often borrows from Middle Eastern and Hindustani genres – currently faces a separate lawsuit by recording house Saregama India.

The company, which owns nearly 50% of the music released in India, claims the hit producer illegally sampled one of their records for the 2005 song, “Put You On The Game,” recorded by The Game.