American Idol winner Taylor Hicks is suing a Nashville music producer to stop the online sales of three songs the singer recorded years ago before his fame. The suit, which seeks compensatory and punitive damages in excess of $75,000, was filed after music producer William Smith released the songs through the iTunes Music Store despite having no apparent ownership rights. MTV News reports: “Hicks’ lawyers were first made aware of the situation by Smith himself, the suit claims. Smith contacted the attorneys, stating his intention to release the tracks. They responded by seeking a preliminary injunction barring Smith from selling the songs. The lawsuit maintains that Smith made no attempt to pull them from the iTunes store. Last week, both sides entered into a settlement—the terms of which are not outlined in the suit. Soon after, Smith once again e-mailed Hicks’ counsel, stating that he would be releasing ‘The Fall’ for digital download, and would make the other two tracks available as well.”
LC Angell
LC Angell was a senior editor at iLounge. Angell is known for her work on various aspects of the Apple ecosystem, including iPhone, iPad, and iPod. In his role at iLounge, Angell was responsible for a wide range of editorial content, including reviews, buyer's guides, news, and features.