Tupac Shakur’s estate is facing a federal lawsuit over allegations that the late rapper's 1996 track "White Man’z World" illegally sampled a copyrighted speech by Dr. Khallid Abdul Muhammad.
The lawsuit, filed by Muhammad’s estate, claims that Shakur’s team used a seven-line excerpt from a 1993 speech given by Muhammad at the “Black Holocaust Nationhood Conference” without permission.
The lawsuit targets multiple parties, including Tupac's estate, Suge Knight, Interscope Records, Death Row Records, Universal’s publishing arm, and producer Darryl “Big D” Harper. The disputed sample features Muhammad calling for support for political prisoners, with the estate arguing that his voice lent the song emotional and political significance. The estate further contends that no license was sought for the sample, no credit was given, and no payment was made to Muhammad or his estate. Additionally, the complaint notes that the song continues to be commercially exploited, being available on streaming platforms and licensed for various uses.
"White Man’z World" was released on Tupac’s posthumous album The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory in November 1996, just weeks after Shakur’s death. Muhammad, a prominent Black nationalist and former spokesperson for the Nation of Islam, passed away in 2001.
The estate of Muhammad argues that Tupac’s use of the sample added authenticity to the song’s message of Black empowerment and resistance against racial injustice. The lawsuit seeks a minimum of $5 million in damages, along with a permanent injunction to prevent further use of Muhammad’s voice, attorney’s fees, and the confiscation of infringing materials.
Attorney Malik Z. Shabazz, representing the estate, emphasized the revolutionary impact of the sample on the track, highlighting its role in shaping political discourse in the Black community during the 1990s.
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