Jay Z Has To Pay Half The Royalties From ‘Versus’ To Swiss Jazz Musician

Money ain’t a thang to Jay Z.

Following an 18-month legal battle, the rapper agreed to pay 50% of the royalties from his 2013 track “Versus” to composer Bruno Spoerri for using the 79-year-old Swiss jazz composer’s instrumental track “On the Way” without permission.

Spoerri confirmed the payment to the ATS news agency. The pianist and saxophonist wrote the original piece in 1978.

The jazz artist had rejected an earlier offer to settle the dispute because the offer was too low, reported Swedish newspaper The Local.

Jay Z has been hit with infringement suits in the past and is currently embroiled in an 8-year-old lawsuit over a sample of an Egyptian tune allegedly used without permission in his megahit “Big Pimpin’.”

The settlement comes just days after Marvin Gaye’s family was awarded $7.4 million when a California jury decided that the Robin Thicke song “Blurred Lines” ripped off Gaye’s 1977 hit “Got to Give It Up.”

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