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The Supreme Court refused Monday to intervene in a lawsuit over the hit song "Rosa Parks" by the Grammy-winning musical group OutKast.
The action, taken without comment from the justices, means the 90-year-old civil rights figure can go ahead with her lawsuit against the band.
The 1998 song is about the entertainment industry and its lyrics do not refer to Parks by name. The chorus of the song goes, "Ah-ha, hush that fuss. Everybody move to the back of the bus."
Parks claimed that OutKast violated her publicity and trademark rights and defamed her. She lost her first round in federal court, but a three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati, Ohio, reinstated part of the lawsuit earlier this year.
The case will now return to a lower federal court judge.
Parks wants all references to her removed from future versions of the record.
OutKast has argued that the song is neither false advertising nor a violation of Parks' publicity rights and is protected by the First Amendment.
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OK, first off, the song came out like four years ago, I was listening to it at high school parties.
Second, the song has nothing to do with her, really. They're using the move to the back of the bus thing as a metaphor for how they're trying to distance themselves from the majority of BS that's passing for rap these days.
I think she'll lose. But, it would've been nice of them to ask her before using her name, I guess.
On a sidenote, Outkast is among the very few good rap acts out there now, in my opinion. Their stuff is more about love and deep stuff like that, rather than how many cars you have, or how big your necklace is. Their new cd, Speakerboxx/The Love Below is great, "Hey Ya" is my favorite song of the second half of the year, maybe the whole year.
The Supreme Court refused Monday to intervene in a lawsuit over the hit song "Rosa Parks" by the Grammy-winning musical group OutKast.
The action, taken without comment from the justices, means the 90-year-old civil rights figure can go ahead with her lawsuit against the band.
The 1998 song is about the entertainment industry and its lyrics do not refer to Parks by name. The chorus of the song goes, "Ah-ha, hush that fuss. Everybody move to the back of the bus."
Parks claimed that OutKast violated her publicity and trademark rights and defamed her. She lost her first round in federal court, but a three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati, Ohio, reinstated part of the lawsuit earlier this year.
The case will now return to a lower federal court judge.
Parks wants all references to her removed from future versions of the record.
OutKast has argued that the song is neither false advertising nor a violation of Parks' publicity rights and is protected by the First Amendment.
______________________________________
OK, first off, the song came out like four years ago, I was listening to it at high school parties.
Second, the song has nothing to do with her, really. They're using the move to the back of the bus thing as a metaphor for how they're trying to distance themselves from the majority of BS that's passing for rap these days.
I think she'll lose. But, it would've been nice of them to ask her before using her name, I guess.
On a sidenote, Outkast is among the very few good rap acts out there now, in my opinion. Their stuff is more about love and deep stuff like that, rather than how many cars you have, or how big your necklace is. Their new cd, Speakerboxx/The Love Below is great, "Hey Ya" is my favorite song of the second half of the year, maybe the whole year.
