G-Dragon and Yang Hyun-suk Sued for Copyright Infringement
Police raided YG Entertainment in connection with singer G-Dragon (real name Kwon Ji-yong) and former YG Entertainment CEO Yang Hyun-suk’s alleged violation of copyright law.
On the 12th, the Seoul Mapo Police Station announced that they had conducted two raids on the YG Entertainment office located in Mapo District and the Korea Music Copyright Association in Gangseo District over allegations of unauthorized reproduction of music.
Background and Claims of the Lawsuit
This incident began when songwriter A filed a lawsuit against Kwon Ji-yong and former CEO Yang Hyun-suk in November of last year.
According to A’s claims, Yang Hyun-suk and others unlawfully reproduced the song 'G-DRAGON' which A composed, and arbitrarily changed the title to 'My Age is Thirteen,' including it in G-Dragon's album around April 2009.
The disputed song 'My Age is Thirteen' was included in G-Dragon's live album 'Shine a Light,' released in 2010, and was a hit at that time.
It is reported that A not only sued former CEO Yang Hyun-suk but also his younger brother, Yang Min-seok, the current CEO of YG Entertainment, and Choi, the head of the subsidiary YG Plus. This reflects A's claims that the entire company leadership was involved in the issue.
A's side claims that even after nine months since the lawsuit was filed, the police investigation has been lacking.
In response, a police official stated, "After reallocating investigators, we are conducting investigations related to the raids and related individuals."
YG Entertainment clarified that "the incident arose during the preparation for a solo performance in 2009 where titles of two songs that had the same name were noted, and it is not unauthorized reproduction of music."
Image Source: (Left) Singer G-Dragon, (Right) Former YG Entertainment CEO Yang Hyun-suk, Seoul Mapo Police Station / Photo = Insight
