Caribbean · Music
Shabba Ranks sues to reclaim publishing rights to his 1990s catalogue
The Jamaican dancehall legend has asked a US federal court to void a work-for-hire clause and return songs including “Mr. Loverman” and “Dem Bow” to his control.
Dancehall legend Shabba Ranks has filed a lawsuit in the United States to reclaim the publishing rights to some of his best-known 1990s work, setting up a fight over a provision of copyright law that can allow artists to take back rights decades after they signed them away.
The artist, born Rexton Rawlston Fernando Gordon, is suing the publishing arm of Greensleeves Records. Billboard, which first obtained and reported the case, said the songs at issue include “Slow and Sexy”, “Housecall”, “Mr. Loverman”, “Let’s Get It On” and the 1990 track “Dem Bow”.
At the centre of the dispute is copyright termination, a provision of US law that lets authors reclaim their intellectual property decades after transferring it. Ranks notified Greensleeves in 2023 that he intended to exercise that right, but the publisher refused.
According to Greensleeves, Ranks’ 1989 publishing deal classified his compositions as “works made for hire”, a category that is excluded from the termination provision. Ranks is contesting the validity of that clause, arguing the songs were never works made for hire, and is asking a judge to declare his termination effective regardless.
The catalogue carries added cultural weight in the region. “Dem Bow” lends its name to the dembow rhythm that sits at the foundation of reggaeton, a genre now dominated worldwide by artists such as Bad Bunny, underlining how far Jamaican dancehall has travelled since Ranks’ commercial peak.
The case arrives as copyright termination becomes a flashpoint across the music industry. Salt-N-Pepa are pursuing a similar claim against Universal Music Group, and the three major labels are asking the US Supreme Court to overturn a recent ruling that extended the termination right beyond American borders.
Representatives for Shabba Ranks and Greensleeves had not commented publicly at the time of reporting. Vincypowa News will follow the case as it develops.
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