Photo Credit: Drake – Janice STFU / OVO / Republic Records
Drake is being sued for copyright infringement on his hit “Janice STFU” by a producer who says the rapper and his team “shamelessly refuse to acknowledge” his substantial contributions.
Drake has been hit with a copyright infringement lawsuit over his hit song “Janice STFU” by a producer named Aviel Calev Hirschfield, who says the rapper and his team “shamelessly refuse to acknowledge” his allegedly substantial contributions to the track.
Filed on Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, the lawsuit names Drake, his OVO Sound imprint, UMG Recordings, and Universal Music Publishing among its defendants.
Specifically, Hirschfield says he sent the chorus to producers in Drake’s circle before the song was released and contributed lyrics, melody, and cadence to the rapper’s biggest track of the year. However, Hirschfield has received no acknowledgement or payment for his contributions. The Portland-based producer is seeking profits and damages from Drake and his label partners.
Meanwhile, Drake and his team say the claims are “entirely fabricated,” and the lawsuit is a “manufactured and baseless attempt” to exploit the rapper’s career.
“Drake wrote this song and has no connection or knowledge of this person, full stop,” said a representative for Drake.
However, Hirschfield has most certainly worked in the rapper’s orbit, having co-written and produced Beyoncé’s “Heated” alongside Drake from her Renaissance album.
The Grammy-winning producer states in his filing that he composed the chorus between December and January, finished the recording around January 25, and sent it to producers in Drake’s circle afterward. No one replied, the filing states, and he registered the work with the Copyright Office effective July 21. However, by then he had already heard “Janice STFU” from around May 15.
According to the lawsuit, the two choruses are “literally identical” across their lyrics, melody, and cadence. But Drake’s team remains undeterred in their assertion that he manipulated the metadata on the recording and has sent him a cease-and-desist letter demanding that he stop publicly claiming ownership.
“Janice STFU” is one of the biggest hits of the year and the breakout track among Drake’s three album releases in 2026. The song debuted at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 and spent 20 weeks at the top of the Hot Rap Songs chart, making it Drake’s longest-leading rap chart hit. The track has also accumulated over 300 million Spotify streams.
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