AOM Music, Inc. v. Benito Antonio Martnez Ocasio Et Al
AOM Music, Inc. v. Benito Antonio Martnez Ocasio Et Al
1 information and belief, is, and at all relevant times was, a corporation organized
2 under the laws of Delaware with its principal place of business in Santa Monica,
3 California.
4 15. Defendants Does 1 through 10 are sued herein by fictitious names for
5 the reason that their true names are unknown to Plaintiffs. Plaintiffs will seek leave
6 to amend this complaint to allege the true names and capacities of these Defendants
7 when the same have been ascertained. Plaintiffs are informed and believes and
8 based thereon alleges that these fictitiously named Defendants are responsible in
9 some manner for the actions and damages alleged herein.
10 16. Plaintiffs are further informed and believe and based thereon allege
11 that Defendants at all times herein alleged were the agents, employees, servants,
12 joint venturers and/or co-conspirators of each of the other remaining Defendants,
13 and that in doing the things herein alleged were acting in the course and scope of
14 such agency, employment, joint venture and/or conspiracy.
15 JURISDICTION AND VENUE
16 17. Subject matter jurisdiction is appropriate to this Court under 28 U.S.C.
17 §§ 1331 and 1338 because this action arises under the Copyright Laws of the
18 United States (17 U.S.C. §§ 101 et seq.), and this Court has supplemental
19 jurisdiction over any related state law claims under 28 U.S.C. § 1367.
20 18. Venue is appropriate under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1391 and 1400 because a
21 substantial part of the events giving rise to the claims for relief occurred in Los
22 Angeles County, and Defendants’ actions caused injury in Los Angeles County.
23 ALLEGATIONS COMMON TO ALL CAUSES OF ACTION
24 BM Records and DJ Playero
25 19. BM Records was founded in 1978 by Pedro Merced and eventually
26 became one of the largest and most influential record labels in Puerto Rican history,
27 selling more than 65 million records across multiple territories.
28 20. BM Records was an early popularizer of the nascent “underground”
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COMPLAINT
Case 2:21-cv-07691-GW-JEM Document 1 Filed 09/27/21 Page 6 of 14 Page ID #:6
1 genre of music, which eventually became more widely known as “reggaeton.” The
2 genre combined Spanish-language singing and rapping with musical influences
3 including American hip hop, Latin American, and Caribbean music.
4 21. Prior to BM Records’ investment in the genre, reggaeton music was
5 largely spread by independent disc jockeys (“DJs”), who would curate and produce
6 music for young Puerto Rican artists, then distribute said music via cassette tapes
7 sold in the streets, public schools, “caserios,” “barrios,” and public residences.
8 22. One of the more influential reggaeton DJs was Pedro Gerardo
9 Torruellas Brito p/k/a DJ Playero (“DJ Playero”). His “Playero” mixtapes in
10 particular served to jumpstart the careers of numerous highly influential Latin
11 artists, including Ramón Luis Ayala Rodríguez p/k/a Daddy Yankee.
12 23. In 1991, Pedro Merced approached DJ Playero on behalf of BM
13 Records, and the parties entered into a distribution deal. In 1992, BM Records
14 released “Playero 37 Underground,” featuring “Besa Tu Cuerpo” and “Chocha Con
15 Bicho.” The release was wildly successful, quickly selling tens of thousands of
16 copies in Puerto Rico and achieving platinum status within eight months.
17 24. Over the following years, Pedro Merced would help shape the
18 burgeoning musical genre by working with the artists on BM Records’ roster to
19 give their output greater commercial appeal. “Playero Street Mix Vol. 1,” released
20 by BM Records in 1995, became the first underground record to gain significant
21 promotion by top Puerto Rican radio stations, ultimately selling more copies during
22 the holiday period of 1995 in Puerto Rico than any other record. This was followed
23 by “Playero Street Mix Vol. 2” in 1996, featuring “Sigan Bailando.”
24 25. “Playero 37: Underground” (Registration No. SR0000253493) and
25 “Playero Greatest Hits: Street Mix 2” (Registration No. SR0000251271) were
26 registered with the United States Copyright Office on June 3, 1998, each listing DJ
27 Playero as sole author and BM Records d/b/a. Latin Music Dist., Inc, Inc.as
28 copyright claimant. On July 1, 2020, the Playero Works were transferred from Latin
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COMPLAINT
Case 2:21-cv-07691-GW-JEM Document 1 Filed 09/27/21 Page 7 of 14 Page ID #:7
11 30. On information and belief, Defendants were well aware of the need to
12 “clear” the various third-party works sampled on “Safaera” by obtaining licenses to
13 each, as demonstrated by the fact that, for example, Melissa Elliott p/k/a Missy
14 Elliot is credited as a writer on “Safaera” due to its sampling of her hit song “Get
15 Ur Freak On.” Indeed, “Safaera” was briefly removed from the music streaming
16 service Spotify on May 14, 2020 due to Defendants’ failure to clear a sample on the
17 track and was later restored upon obtaining such clearance.4 However, at no point
18 did Defendants ever “clear” the Playero Works for use on “Safaera.”
19 31. “Safaera” was an instant success for Defendants, having been streamed
20 over one billion times between YouTube5 and Spotify alone.6 On November 12,
21
22
3
Isabella Herrera, “‘Safeara’ by Bad Bunny Review,” Pitchfork (Mar. 4, 2020),
https://pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/bad-bunny-safaera-ft-jowell-and-randy-and-
23 nengo-flow/ (last accessed December 7, 2020).
4
See Spotify Mexico, Twitter (May 15, 2020),
24 https://twitter.com/SpotifyMexico/status/1261478552157007879.
25
5
Bad Bunny, “Safaera - Bad Bunny x Jowell & Randy x Ñengo Flow |
YHLQMDLG,” YouTube (Feb. 28, 2020), https://youtu.be/jCQ_6XbATPc
26 (313,503,826 views as of September 24, 2021); Bad Bunny, “Safaera,” YouTube
(Feb. 29. 2020), https://youtu.be/PZ6CgcC2uEs (151,394,814 views as of
27 September 24, 2021); Keller Lokomotion, “Safaera (LETRA) - Bad Bunny x Jowell
& Randy x Ñengo Flow,” YouTube (Mar. 10, 2020), https://youtu.be/tuQVkIvYJr0
28 (32,130,359 views as of September 24, 2021).
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COMPLAINT
Case 2:21-cv-07691-GW-JEM Document 1 Filed 09/27/21 Page 9 of 14 Page ID #:9
1 2020, it was certified Gold, Platinum, and 21x Multi-Platinum for sales of 1.26
2 million units by the Recording Industry Association of America.7
3 32. Defendants Ocasio, Masis, Acevedo, Muñoz, Rosa, and Gonzales are
4 each credited as writers of “Safaera,” which is commercially distributed by Rimas
5 and for which DNP, EMI, Universal, TRNI, and Polygram serve as publishers.
6 Infringement of Plaintiff’s Works on “Safaera”
7 33. Of importance to the instant action, “Safaera” includes at least four
8 distinct uncleared samples of the Playero Works. The following chart illustrates the
9 lyrics taken from the Playero Works as they appear in “Safaera”:
10 Playero Works Safaera
11 A Chocha Con Bicho 0:00-0:10 Safaera 1:43-1:50
Chocha con bicho, bicho con nalgas Chocha con bicho, bicho con nalga
12 Cho-Chocha con bicho, bicho con nalgas Cho-Chocha con bicho, bicho con nalga, sí
Cho-Chocha con bicho, chocha con bicho
13 Chocha con bicho, bicho con nalgas Chocha con bicho, bicho con nalga
14 B Besa Tu Cuerpo 1:11 - 1:13 Safaera 1:50-1:53
Te-ta rozando mis tetilla’ Te-ta rozando mi tetilla
15
C Sigan Bailando 1:06 - 1:08 Safaera 1:53-1:56
16 Este año no quiero putilla Este año no quiero putilla
18 Te ven con mucho macho y te quieren pegar Te ven con mucha' prenda' y se quieren pegar
Te ven empericao y te quieren pegar Te ven bien activa'o y se quieren pegar
19 Y los que fuman pasto se quieren pegar
20 Porque está bien buena, porque está bien buena Porque está bien buena, porque está bien buena
Nalgas bien grande como Iris Chacón Teta bien grande como Lourdes Chacón
21 Teta bien grande como Lourdes Chacón Las nalga' bien grande como Iris Chacón
La chocha no se porque no la he visto La chocha no sé porque no la he visto
22 Pero vamos pa’la cama a divertirse Pero vamo' pa' la cama a clavarte en panty
17 By /s Neville Johnson
18 Neville L. Johnson
Attorneys for Plaintiffs
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COMPLAINT
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