US rapper Joseph 'The Governor' Flowers is suing Universal label Interscope over a track that appeared on one of Tupac Shakur's many posthumous albums. The track under dispute is 'Po Nigga Bluez', a mid-nineties track a jazzed up version of which appeared on Tupac's 2004 release 'Loyal To The Game'.
It seems the 'Bluez' was originally a Flowers track with Tupac providing some guest background rapping. It was recorded in 1990, before Tupac had made a named for himself, though appeared on Flower's 1995 album 'Floss Mode', by which time Shakur was rather well known.
The 2004 version was a remix by Scott Storch and featuring vocals by Ron Isley. But Flowers claims it was created without his permission, and includes enough of his original track to constitute infringement. He said he only discovered the reworked track last year, hence his litigation now.
The Governor is asking for an immediate injunction to stop the sale of the 2004 album while he sues for statutory and punitive damages in relation to copies already sold.