Rick Astley is reportedly suing new artist Yung Gravy as his hit song impersonates his vocals (Picture: WireImage)
Rick Astley has filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit over his track Never Gonna Give You Up.
The hit represents Astley’s first and only UK number one, sitting atop the charts for a total of five weeks upon its release in 1987.
Of course, as anyone who has spent any time on the internet knows, the song found renewed popularity when it became a meme designed to trick people into listening to the song when they were trying to watch a video on something else – aka RickRolling.
Now Astley and his 1987 earworm have hit headlines as the Lancashire-born singer sues rap artist Yung Gravy for using an imitation of his vocals.
As reported by TMZ, Astley filed documents in a Los Angeles court after Gravey – real name Matthew Raymond Hauri – used an imitation of his vocals in Never Gonna Give You Up for his 2022 single Betty (Get Money).
Astley’s team reportedly told a LA court that Hauri, 26, and his production team including impersonator Nick Popnick Seeley were unauthorised to reproduce his vocals, and were licensed only to use the instrumentals.
Astley’s number one hit Never Gonna Give You Up became a viral sensation online over a decade ago and remains hugely popular today (Picture: Getty Images)
The musician is also suing impressionist Popnick for covering his vocals, the outlet reports.
They argued the team had ‘conspired’ to include an imitation of Astley’s vocals throughout the song that was ‘nearly indistinguishable from the real thing.
This, Astley claims, cost him potential future collaboration opportunities.
In court documents, Astley cites a Billboard interview with Hauri where he says he wanted to use a sample of Never Gonna Give You Up but thought they wouldn’t get permission.
Hauri spoke in an interview about how they used an impersonator for Astley’s vocals as it was easier legally (Picture: ABC via Getty Images)
However someone who ‘had part-ownership of the rights to the sample’ told him to ‘try it out.’
Hauri went on to say that he and his impressionist friend Popnick ‘basically remade the whole song [with] a different singer and instruments… because it makes it easier legally.’
It’s understood Astley is suing the team behind Betty (Get Money) for millions of dollars.
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US native Hauri has found major success with the single, as it has reached Gold status in North America and Australia.
Metro.co.uk has reached out to reps for Astley and Hauri for comment
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