Michael Jackson, Manu Dibango, Rihanna in copyright infringement?

February 15, 2009 2:08 PM

“Mamase mamasa mamamakusa” or “Mamaku mamasa makumakusa”? Michael Jackson is sued for copyright infringement – again – by Cameroonian singer Manu Dibango (Flash homepage with autoplaying audio). Dibango’s Duala-language original phrase mutated into something else (Swahili?) in “Wanna Be Starting Somethin’.” They settled out of court – but then Jackson licensed that phrase to Rihanna, a right that Dibango claims Jackson never had.

PRI’s The World podcast (and sibling The World in Words) cover the topic, quizzing a copyright lawyer and playing snippets from all three songs.

posted by joeclark (40 comments total)

Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa?
posted by geoff. at 2:16 PM on February 15, 2009 [1 favorite]

Next: The white guys' class action suit.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 2:23 PM on February 15, 2009

"My machine mom install my Microsoft"
posted by Sys Rq at 2:29 PM on February 15, 2009 [6 favorites]

Please stop posting about Rihanna. Thank you.
posted by fleetmouse at 2:45 PM on February 15, 2009 [4 favorites]

Mama say mama saw my moccasin.
posted by box at 2:50 PM on February 15, 2009

Before you try, know that pretty much every possible joke about what it sounds like in English has been made between 1983 and now. In fact, discovery of a new one would be an occasion that would warrant publishing a paper on it in the Journal of American Comedy.
posted by DecemberBoy at 3:06 PM on February 15, 2009 [1 favorite]

Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa

When reading the FPP I, too, thought of the same song!
posted by ericb at 3:08 PM on February 15, 2009

So nothing we say here should ever have been said before? Uh-oh.
posted by GrammarMoses at 3:11 PM on February 15, 2009

Guabi, Guabi
posted by horsemuth at 3:12 PM on February 15, 2009

Stories I had read about Rihanna before today: 0.
Blame I now place on MetaFilter: 2.
posted by rokusan at 3:18 PM on February 15, 2009 [2 favorites]

Out of interest here is Manu Dibango's "Soul Makossa" from 1972, Michael Jackson's hit from 1983 and Rihanna's derivation.
posted by rongorongo at 3:32 PM on February 15, 2009

I felt like shouting hurrah.
posted by Smart Dalek at 3:56 PM on February 15, 2009

WTFakussa?
posted by jonmc at 4:00 PM on February 15, 2009

Why all the disdain for Rihanna? The beat in "Umbrella" is sick. She has a helluva voice, too.
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 4:08 PM on February 15, 2009

If Dibango wins another round against Jackson, will Rihanna sue Jackson for misrepresenting the license she purchased? What if they quickly translate and re-release Rihanna's hit in Basque?
posted by terranova at 4:16 PM on February 15, 2009

If They Might Be Giants can use the word "Nyquil" in a song, then Michael Jackson certainly has the right to use contrived nonsense in his.
posted by LSK at 4:34 PM on February 15, 2009

Stories I had read about Rihanna before today: 0.
Blame I now place on MetaFilter: 2.

I know, right? It always pisses me off when I learn something new via Metafilter.

Mods, can you please delete anything outside of the white male comfort zone? Thanks!
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 4:35 PM on February 15, 2009 [5 favorites]

Why all the disdain for Rihanna? The beat in "Umbrella" is sick. She has a helluva voice, too.
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 4:08 PM on February 15 [+] [!]

As far as pop goes, I really like Rihanna. But the song Umbrella is pure unmitigated crap.
posted by Vindaloo at 4:39 PM on February 15, 2009

The beat in "Umbrella" is sick.

CULTURE NORM VIOLATED. INITIATE CRANKY ALGORITHM.

LSK: TMBG used the word in a song, but weren't allowed to actually name the song "Nyquil Driver" on the track list. It had to be called "AKA Driver."
posted by JHarris at 4:44 PM on February 15, 2009

i am still flabbergasted about the 2LiveCrew decision that has led to nonesense like the "licensing" of a fucking line out of a song.

Can you imagine Fear of a Black Planet being made today or Paul's Boutique?

This is one Supreme Court decision that need to be seriously reverted because it's killing creativity in a big ugly way. If not, then the RIAA needs to die in a fire, but something really has to give.
posted by liza at 5:04 PM on February 15, 2009

Why all the disdain for Rihanna? The beat in "Umbrella" is sick. She has a helluva voice, too. #

De-lurking to point out one of my (many) favorite facts about pop culture: the beat from Rihanna's "Umbrella" is a "simple, slowed-down drum loop from the music-software program GarageBand" plus some bland synths.* If you have a Mac handy, you can look it up yourself. The loop is called Vintage Funk Kit 03.

*I'll admit, I do like the result.
posted by Ryon at 5:23 PM on February 15, 2009 [3 favorites]

I always thought it was "I was saved by the sound of Michael's song".
posted by SPUTNIK at 5:29 PM on February 15, 2009 [1 favorite]

I'm glad you came out of lurking to point this out to me. Here I had it broken down as "open hat, snare, kick-kick-kick, snare". A lot of my favorite beats are dead simple.
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 5:31 PM on February 15, 2009

Mods, can you please delete anything outside of the white male comfort zone? Thanks!

Huh? Some people are sick of hearing about Rihanna because of the incessant media coverage of the domestic violence incident despite no one really knowing what happened, and that they haven't been able to go anywhere for the last two years without hearing "Umbrella" five times an hour, not because it's outside the "white male comfort zone" whatever the hell that is. And they come to Metafilter to read about subjects they haven't seen on every other media outlet, which is precisely the opposite of staying in a comfort zone.

I wonder if you find it ironic that in lamenting stereotypes, you perpetuate one.

You wonder if instead of listening to facts and thinking for myself if I'm going to be more concerned with the color of the person or group making the statement? Really?

Well, apparently you are pretty concerned with it and that's really too bad.
posted by banishedimmortal at 5:42 PM on February 15, 2009

Huh? Some people are sick of hearing about Rihanna because of the incessant media coverage of the domestic violene...

You're talking about something completely different. My comment was specifically about this:

Stories I had read about Rihanna before today: 0.
Blame I now place on MetaFilter: 2.

Those statements indicate the person is tired of hearing about Rihanna after two posts in day on completely different topics. That's beyond silly.

Well, apparently you are pretty concerned with it and that's really too bad.

Completely different thread and subject.


That said, I enjoyed hearing the original version of the phrase. I wonder what exactly possessed Jackson or his people to think they could license the phrase to Rihanna.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 6:03 PM on February 15, 2009

I wonder what exactly possessed Jackson or his people to think they could license the phrase to Rihanna.

The right of Desperately Needing Greenbacks, maybe? Combined with Maybe No-one Will Notice?
posted by Brockles at 6:12 PM on February 15, 2009

Huh? Some people are sick of hearing about Rihanna because of the incessant media coverage of the domestic violene...
You're talking about something completely different. My comment was specifically about this: Stories I had read about Rihanna before today: 0. Blame I now place on MetaFilter: 2.

No, sorry, BB. The second comment was mine, so I can say authoritatively that banishedimmortal read me exactly right, and it wasn't something "completely different".

I have been watching stories about Rihanna run past the crawl on what seems to be every TV in every airport and bar I have passed this week (and I fly and drink a lot). I didn't know the details, but it sure sounded like Fox News Lite-style engineered distraction. I did manage to avoid reading any actual stories, though. And until today, MeFi was safe from the zombie hordes of Rihannadrama. But then she finally got me, even here, and so I finally had to read something, because hey, it's MetaFilter-endorsed™ now, right?

So, therefore, MeFi's fault. Now I have to read it. It's not like I flagged the post.

Also: mamma says mamma's on the monkeystar.
posted by rokusan at 6:23 PM on February 15, 2009

I wonder what exactly possessed Jackson or his people to think they could license the phrase to Rihanna.

Presumably she/her people just licensed the song, and Jackson's people didn't remember/notice the big lawsuit thing around it. Stupid, but not out of the realm of possibility.
posted by graventy at 6:32 PM on February 15, 2009

And they come to Metafilter to read about subjects they haven't seen on every other media outlet,

Not me. Metafilter is my one and only media outlet.
posted by signal at 6:37 PM on February 15, 2009

No, sorry, BB. The second comment was mine, so I can say authoritatively that banishedimmortal read me exactly right, and it wasn't something "completely different".

Well I was wrong, so apologies.

So, therefore, MeFi's fault. Now I have to read it.

You'd think you would have realized after that incident with the goat that you don't have to do everything Metafilter says. But hey, if that's how you roll and it helps you get through the video shoots, then so be it.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 7:27 PM on February 15, 2009

I suppose The Bloodhound Gang is looking over their shoulders.
posted by wobh at 7:40 PM on February 15, 2009

... to see their carreers hurtling quickly downhill.
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 7:49 PM on February 15, 2009

Or some original kwassa kwassa (although I also like the Cape Cod variety)
posted by mike3k at 8:54 PM on February 15, 2009

The man MJ is about to lose his nose due to a flesh eating virus.
... and he is broke.
Take the compliment that he "appreciated and integrated"
“Mamase mamasa mamamakusa" into a HUGE hit
..and go on about your business.
posted by will wait 4 tanjents at 10:32 PM on February 15, 2009

11 syllables. 4 phonemes. €500,000. I am in awe.
posted by Ritchie at 11:58 PM on February 15, 2009 [1 favorite]

You'd think you would have realized after that incident with the goat that you don't have to do everything Metafilter says.

It's easier for me to follow whatever Big Blue says. If it makes me read things I might not otherwise read, that's... well that's probably the point. I just said it in an awkward way that probably sounded like thread crapping. Accident.

If everyone on MetaFilter jumped off a cliff, I'd probably favorite that.
posted by rokusan at 2:43 AM on February 16, 2009

Soul Makossa was a huge hit in it's own rights as a disco standard for many years before Jackson used variation on it's vocal to tap into the goodwill already associated with it. Whilst I think the whole idea of licensing melody or lyrics is nonsense, it is obvious to me that Jackson benefited from his appropriation of the line without acknowledging or recompensing Manu Dibango.

For the eighth African Nations Cup, the great football event in Yaoundé in 1972, Manu composed a hymn, the other side of which became the biggest African hit of all time, "Soul Makossa".

While at first, neither Yaoundé or Paris seemed to appreciate this piece, a few Americans who were visiting Decca took the single and played it on their radios. It was even ranked in some American charts. But there was such a gulf between America and Europe that only Rolande Lecouviour seemed to believe in Manu's lucky star, and had him record the "O boso" album, which again contained the track (later plagiarised by Michael Jackson). Faced with this American success, Decca contacted Atlantic and arranged a one month tour in the States, with ten days at the famous Appollo in Harlem. This was in 1973. If America had seemed a dream for Manu and his musicians, it was to become reality in the space of a few days. He was already well known and his success was enormous. Black Americans saw in his music the expression of their origins.

The French media at last began to understand that this difficult to place instrumentalist was a talented artist, and he triumphed at the Olympia in Paris at the end of 1973.

He then embarked on a big tour of the US with the Fania All Stars, a large "family" of Latino musicians and singers.

Jackson may have been the self-appointed king of pop, but Manu is the Lion of Cameroon and has arguably influenced music globally as much, if not more than Jackson. Their legacies will be very different.
posted by asok at 4:42 AM on February 16, 2009 [3 favorites]

Mamma say mamma saw a mongoose, ah!
Mamma say mamma saw a mongoose, ah!
Mamma say mamma saw a mongoose, ah!
posted by kryptondog at 8:21 AM on February 16, 2009

Until now I never heard any of Rihanna's songs and I would have preferred to keep it that way. I really hate that kind of pop music (including britney spears and all of the sound-alike singers). I actively avoid listening to anything in the top 20.

Now if Arcade Fire or Vampire Weekend make it to the top 20, I'd reconsider.
posted by mike3k at 3:48 PM on February 26, 2009

Now if Arcade Fire or Vampire Weekend make it to the top 20, I'd reconsider.

Um... What?
posted by Sys Rq at 4:01 PM on February 26, 2009