Drake Denies Allegations In 'Marvin's Room' Lawsuit

[NelsonG]

By Sowmya Krishnamurthy

Yesterday, news broke that Ericka Lee--a woman alleging to be Drake's ex-girlfriend--is suing the rapper for illicitly using her voice on the drunken love ode "Marvin's Room" without compensating her. She's seeking damages and co-writing royalties for her work on the song's opening monologue and hook. In other words, "Are you drunk right now" equates to big bucks. Now Drake's reps are vehemently refuting those allegations."

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"This claim is entirely without merit and our client has not engaged in any wrongful conduct. Ericka Lee consented to the use of her voice in the song “Marvin’s Room” prior to its release. Lee asked only for the credit she received as “Syren Lyric Muse,” and she did not ask for any compensation," a spokesperson for the rapper said on Friday. "It was only after she retained a lawyer that there was a demand for payment. Drake tried for months to resolve the matter amicably, and he now looks forward to being vindicated in court."

Last year, Drake shared the process for making "Marvin's Room."

“[Longtime producer Noah '40' Shebib] started making this beat, and I started singing these melodies, and I got a phone call from this girl,” he recalled. “I was in the booth singing [hums opening bars of the chorus]. I remember that was the first part I had.” “Middle of recording I got a call from this girl, and she had been drinking,” he continued. “Because I was recording, I just put the phone on the speaker and sat it on the music stand. ‘40’ thought so quick to record it. I went back to recording more melodies. As I was recording, he was taking pieces of the conversation out … You know where the story is going. At the end of the night we had a song called ‘Marvin’s Room.’”

A source close to Drake tells the LA Times that Lee and the rapper never even dated in the first place. Expect plenty of drunken texts to surface before this is resolved.

[url=http://rapfix.mtv.com/2012/02/04/drake-marvins-room-lawsuit-response/]View the full article[/url]