Beyonce and JAY-Z are being sued by Jamaican dancer L’Antoinette Stines, who claims the superstar couple didn’t give her proper credit for her part in their song Black Effect.
In the papers, filed on Tuesday in federal court and obtained by TMZ.com, Stines claims Beyonce and Jay sought her out in March, 2018 to help them find the best dancers for a video promoting their tour.
Stines alleges that after helping them with that, the couple then asked her to record her views on love which, she claims, she was told would be used in the video “for promotional purposes”. She allegedly signed a contract handed to her by the pair’s lawyers on the day of the shoot, and was apparently once again told that the interview would only be used for promotion.
However, upon hearing Black Effect – from Beyonce and Jay-Z’s 2018 Everything Is Love album – for the first time, Stines was stunned to hear that the entire first minute of the tune is of her speaking.
She claims she wasn’t credited for her part in the song, and the lack of recognition has left her feeling “artistically raped”.
Stines is now suing Beyonce and Jay for copyright infringement and violation of her right to publicity. She’s also asking for damages, and a writing credit on the song – as well as the royalties which come with such a credit.
Beyonce and JAY-Z have yet to publicly comment on the lawsuit.