The Black Eyed Peas’ music publisher BMG Rights Management is suing a toy company over alleged similarities between one of their iconic tracks and a piece that sings like a unicorn.
The Poopsie Slime Surprise: Dancing unicorn the toy was created by MGA (the company behind Bratz). According to the lawsuit, the toys sing a song called “My Poops” when the heart-shaped navel is pressed. However, this song is said to have been copied from the rap group’s 2005 hit “My Humps”.
The lawsuit (via Reuters) reports the alleged similarity of melodies, lyrics, chords and other elements of the songs. BMG also said the “My Poops” singer sounded “very similar” to Black Eyed Peas singer Fergie.
“My poo, my poo, my poo, my poo. What you gonna do with all this shit, with all this shit,” sings the toy.
“I drive my parents crazy, I do it every day,” he continues. In “My Humps,” Fergie of the Black Eyed Peas sings, “I drive these brothers crazy, I do it every day.”
BMG stated that the Poopsie Slime Surprise toy line has earned MGA tens of millions of dollars, and part of that success is due to “My Poops”, which was also used to advertise the product. MGA apparently also ignored BMG’s termination notices.
BMG has sought damages from the court of at least $10m (£8.7m) but declined to comment on the case.
Last year, Will.i.am told NME he was working on a new Black Eye Peas album. “We’ve been actively working on it for the past months and continue to record along the way,” he said.
“Being able to tour again was probably one of the best news for us after this pandemic. We love to travel, we love to perform. It’s our fuel, our way of finding inspiration, being creative and trying new things. After a seven-year hiatus with the Black Eyed Peas, we may disappear and never achieve this kind of success again. But we worked hard, tried to reinvent ourselves, teamed up with Latin American artists and pushed him out of our comfort zone. It worked. You should never take anything for granted. You still have to learn,” he added.
