Migos Off The Hook In Copyright Case Over “Walk It, Talk It”

Source: ExclusiveAccess.net / ExclusiveAccess.Net

Judge Sides With Atlanta Rappers In Song Theft Suit Over “Walk It, Talk It”

The Migos are off the hook in a federal copyright infringement case over the origins of their hit song, “Walk It, Talk It.”

Last week, Judge Analisa Torres OK’d dismissing up and coming North Carolina artist Leander C. Pickett’s suit against the trio, ruling that he didn’t apply for copyright protection for his song “Walk It Like I Talk It,” until after he sued Migos for allegedly co-opting the hook and releasing it as their own.

Pickett sued Migos – Takeoff, Offset and Quavo – in 2018 along with Capitol Records and Quality Control Music for copyright infringement, alleging the rappers’ song lifted major elements from his tune. Pickett said he recorded the “Walk It Like I Talk It” with a local DJ and released it on his mixtape “It’s Like A Movie” in 2008, according to court papers obtained by BOSSIP. Pickett said the DJ that he recorded the song with played the piece for Quality Control CEO Kevin “Coach K” Lee, who later oversaw the release of “Walk It, Talk It,” for his artists, Migos, on their 2018 album “Culture II.”

But the Migos asked the judge to throw the case out, in part because they argued that the chorus in question “Walk It Like I Talk it” was the only similarity between the two songs. They also contended that Pickett did not register his song with the U.S. Copyright Office until after he filed suit – rendering his claim invalid.

Judge Torres came back and sided with the defendants, and the case was closed the same day.