Taking on one element of fair use, it reads, “A work is transformative when it ‘uses the copyrighted material itself for a purpose, or imbues it with a character, different from that for which it was created.’ ‘Pound Cake’ does just that. The order goes into substantial detail in looking at the passage in question, which features Drake and Jay-Z rapping. The decision is unusual, not only because fair-use rulings are rare in songwriting cases, but also because in this era courts are largely favoring plaintiffs in cases like Robin Thicke and Pharrell’s “Blurred Lines” and Katy Perry’s “Dark Horse.” The news was first reported by The Hollywood Reporter. Drake’s song appeared on his 2013 album “Nothing Was the Same.” The Second Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed today that Drake’s use of the 1982 recording “Jimmy Smith Rap” in his song “Pound Cake/Paris Morton Music 2” was fair use of the copyrighted work.
