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Mon, Oct 17, 2022, 16:00
- The legendary house label has responded claiming it has "proof of the truth."
Trax Records was sued by almost two dozen artists on Friday, October 14th, over claims the seminal house label failed to pay royalties, Rolling Stone reports.
The artists in question have sued the label, the estate of its cofounder, Larry Sherman, and its current owners, Screamin' Rachael Cain and Sandyee Barns. Scene pioneers Marshall Jefferson, Adonis, Maurice Joshua and Trax cofounder Vince Lawrence are among those who filed the lawsuit, some of whom claim they haven't received a penny from the label.
According to the lawsuit, the complainants are entitled to "$150,000 with respect to each timely registered work that was infringed." Sean Mulroney, the lawyer representing them, described forged signatures, bounced checks and dubious accounting as commonplace during the early years of Trax.
"Larry Sherman said he was going to pay them and never did," Mulroney told Rolling Stone. "Are you going to spend £50-60,000 to chase it down, knowing there's no moving forward? What are they worth? You have to go, 'Is it worth it? I’ll just keep writing.' And for some of these guys, it was, 'I'll never write another song again.'"
Trax responded to the news with a rambling Facebook post, which appears to have been written by Cain.
"I never tried to hurt the artists who wish to destroy my reputation and I have proof of the truth," said the post. It also thanks the house "originals" who have continued to support the label, citing "Promised Land" producer Joe Smooth among them.
The post continued: "I wish only good things to all of the classic artists even those who are hateful. Hate is never the answer. The truth will be told and only LOVE can conquer all…"
This lawsuit follows Larry Heard and Robert Owens' successful recent legal battle against Trax. Both artists won back ownership of their music, including formative house tracks like "Can You Feel It" and "Bring Down The Walls." Neither artist, however, received damages, as the current Trax owners didn't have the money to pay.
Trax responded to the result of Heard and Owens' lawsuit with a statement blaming former joint venture partner Casablanca Media Publishing for its failure to pay artists.
Read Trax's most recent post in full.