Music sampling is the process by which a musician or record producer uses a portion of an existing song in a brand-new recording, looping it and layering it with new music in a new context .
Like other forms of art, musicians from time to time borrow material from one another, referencing or using pieces of another’s music in their own. The complication, however, is that copyright law gives musicians exclusive rights over their work.
If you use “samples” of other people’s music in your own music, you should first obtain written permission, so as to avoid allegations of copyright infringement. This is particularly true if you intend to release your music commercially and profit from the sales.
The Estate (children) of late Marvin Gaye sued Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams for copying the melodies of their father’s hit song “Got to Give It Up” in their 2013 hit song Blurred Lines. Robin Thicke paid more than $5m (Five Million Dollars) after a jury ruled in favour of the Gaye family. Nigerian artiste, Goya Menor was forced to remove his viral hit song “Ameno Amapiano Remix” from all digital streaming platforms for failing to clear the sample of his hit song from Pro Era.
This article aims to answer questions that stakeholders and interested persons in the music industry may have concerning sampling
