The Gist
A landmark copyright lawsuit filed in 2021 by Jamaican production duo Steely & Clevie — alleging that roughly 2,000 recordings by more than 150 artists copied the dembow rhythm first introduced in their 1989 track 'Fish Market' — will proceed toward a jury trial after US District Judge André Birotte Jr declined, on July 2, 2026, to resolve the case himself, finding that competing expert opinions on the rhythm's originality present disputed facts that cannot be settled as a matter of law.
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What Happened
On July 2, 2026, US District Judge André Birotte Jr issued a summary judgment ruling in a Los Angeles federal court that sent shockwaves through the global music industry: only a jury — not the judge — can decide whether Jamaican production duo Steely & Clevie own the copyright to the dembow rhythm, the percussive heartbeat of reggaeton.
The lawsuit, filed in 2021 by Cleveland "Clevie" Browne and the heirs of the late Wycliffe "Steely" Johnson, claims that nearly 2,000 recordings by more than 150 artists unlawfully copied the dembow rhythm first heard in their 1989 instrumental track "Fish Market."
The defendants include some of the biggest names in contemporary music — Bad Bunny, Karol G, Daddy Yankee, Drake, Justin Bieber, Luis Fonsi and Pitbull — as well as label units tied to Universal Music Group, Sony Music and Warner Music Group.
Judge Birotte declined to grant summary judgment for either side, finding that both parties presented credible but directly conflicting expert testimony on whether the musical elements in "Fish Market" — its kick, snare, hi-hat and tom arrangement — are sufficiently original to warrant copyright protection. "These are classic disputes of fact, not law," he wrote.
The case will now advance into a further discovery phase examining whether defendants had access to "Fish Market" and copied it, before proceeding to trial. Hundreds of millions of US dollars in potential damages hang in the balance.
• Judge André Birotte Jr issued his ruling on July 2, 2026, in a Los Angeles federal court • The lawsuit was originally filed in 2021 by Cleveland 'Clevie' Browne and heirs of Wycliffe 'Steely' Johnson • Nearly 2,000 recordings by more than 150 artists are named in the suit • Defendants include Bad Bunny, Karol G, Daddy Yankee, Drake, Justin Bieber, Luis Fonsi, Pitbull, and all three major music label groups • The disputed track is 'Fish Market,' a 1989 Steely & Clevie instrumental • Both sides presented competing expert testimony on the originality of the dembow rhythm's musical elements • The judge ruled the disputes are factual, not legal, requiring a jury to decide • The case will proceed to a further discovery phase before trial • Hundreds of millions of dollars in damages are at stake
Reggaeton ‘Dembow’ Copyright Case By The Numbers
Steely & Clevie’s lawsuit alleges that roughly 2,000 recordings incorporating the dembow rhythm copied elements of their 1989 track “Fish Market.”[1]
The case names more than 150 artists as defendants, including Bad Bunny, Karol G, Daddy Yankee, Drake, Justin Bieber, Luis Fonsi and Pitbull.[1]
A key subset of the lawsuit focuses on 56 specific reggaeton and pop tracks (including hits like “Despacito”) that allegedly incorporate the dembow rhythm derived from “Fish Market.”[2]
An academic legal analysis notes the suit’s claim that over 1,800 reggaeton tracks have unlawfully incorporated the “Fish Market” dembow rhythm, illustrating the scale of alleged copying.[3]
Many of the 56 highlighted songs, such as global reggaeton hits, individually amassed hundreds of millions to over a billion streams/views on major platforms, indicating substantial commercial exploitation of the contested rhythm.[2]
The dembow rhythm at issue was first introduced in Steely & Clevie’s instrumental “Fish Market” in 1989, making the dispute span approximately 37 years of musical evolution up to the 2026 jury‑trial ruling.[1][3]
The dembow case is unusually large for a music copyright dispute, targeting around 2,000 recordings and more than 150 artists, which makes its outcome potentially genre‑defining.[1]
A relatively small core group of 56 globally successful songs sits at the center of the alleged infringement, many with hundreds of millions to over a billion streams, indicating that any liability could involve major revenues.[2]
Legal analyses highlight that there is no clear international consensus on whether a rhythm alone can be copyrighted, and some jurisdictions (like India) have never recognized standalone rhythm protection, emphasizing the precedent‑setting nature of the U.S. jury’s eventual decision.[2][3]
The Impact
If a jury ultimately finds the specific dembow arrangement in 'Fish Market' copyrightable and infringed, the ruling could influence how courts treat similar rhythms and foundational pop patterns, potentially affecting other songs that closely replicate the same arrangement.
According to Billboard, hundreds of millions of US dollars in damages are at stake across roughly 2,000 recordings.
For the Caribbean music industry, the case is a reckoning: Jamaican creators whose rhythms powered a global genre may finally receive legal recognition — or the courts may affirm that foundational rhythmic elements belong to the public domain.
"The case could put hundreds of millions of dollars in damages at stake across roughly 2,000 recordings by more than 150 artists, with experts warning a plaintiff victory would be 'unprecedented in music copyright litigation.'"
— Billboard / Duke University law professor Jennifer Jenkins, as reported across multiple outlets
Reggaeton ‘Dembow’ Copyright Case By The Numbers
Perspectives
Steely & Clevie and their supporters: Jamaican creators are owed recognition and compensation: Plaintiffs' lawyer Stephen Doniger argues the dembow riddim comprises seven discrete original elements found in no prior work, and expressed confidence a jury will find it protectable. Reggaeton historian Katelina Eccleston frames the case as rooted in a long-standing racial and economic hierarchy that has allowed lighter-skinned Latin artists to profit enormously from Jamaican rhythmic innovations without adequate credit.
Defendants: Copyright cannot be used to claim ownership of an entire genre's foundational beat: Defense attorneys argue that the dembow rhythm existed long before 'Fish Market' in traditions including the centuries-old habanera, making it an unprotectable 'basic building block' of music. They contend that plaintiffs' 30 years of inaction — filing no copyrights or legal action until 2020 — allowed an entire genre to develop in good faith, and that granting copyright now would amount to monopolistic control over reggaeton.
Legal scholars: The case raises unprecedented questions about rhythm, copyright and cultural ownership: Academic experts caution that a plaintiff victory would be unprecedented in music copyright litigation, potentially conferring a monopoly over an entire genre. Wayne Marshall notes that reggaeton's rise to multibillion-dollar status changes the ethical calculus around creative borrowing that was accepted when the genre had little commercial value.
"A win for Steely & Clevie would confer a monopoly over an entire genre, something unprecedented in music copyright litigation."
— Jennifer Jenkins, Law professor, Duke University, via Billboard
C360 View
This case is about more than copyright law. It is about whether the Caribbean — specifically Jamaica — ever receives its due for the cultural exports that have made others extraordinarily wealthy.
The dembow rhythm was born in Kingston in 1989, when Cleveland 'Clevie' Browne and Wycliffe 'Steely' Johnson recorded 'Fish Market.' That syncopated boom-ch-boom-chick pattern crossed into Latin America via Shabba Ranks' 1990 hit 'Dem Bow' — and became the rhythmic spine of reggaeton, one of the most commercially dominant genres on the planet. The clue, as they say, is in the name: reggaeton. It did not grow from nowhere.
Where would Bad Bunny be without dembow? Daddy Yankee? Pitbull? Drake? Luis Fonsi, whose 'Despacito' became one of the most-streamed songs in history? The honest answer is that the entire reggaeton industry — a multibillion-dollar global enterprise dominated by Puerto Rican, Dominican and Cuban artists — is built on a rhythmic foundation that two Jamaican producers laid in a Kingston studio more than three decades ago.
And yet Steely & Clevie filed their lawsuit in 2021. Not 1995. Not 2005. Thirty-two years after 'Fish Market' was recorded.
That delay is partly explained by the music industry's historical indifference to crediting Black Caribbean creativity — enthusiastically appropriating it, rarely compensating it. It also raises a deeper question: why has Jamaica's creative industry never fully monetised what it gave the world? Reggae and dancehall have influenced virtually every corner of global popular music — from hip-hop to Afrobeats to reggaeton — yet the commercial returns have flowed elsewhere.
Spanish-speaking Caribbean artists singing in Spanish reached audiences that English-speaking Jamaican artists, paradoxically, could not. The language barrier that should have been a disadvantage became, for reggaeton, a strength — because the rhythm transcended words.
The legal questions are genuinely complex. The defendants raise legitimate concerns about copyright being used to lock down an entire genre. A Los Angeles jury, dazzled by the star power of the defendants, may not rule in favour of two relatively unknown Jamaican producers. That is the uncomfortable reality.
But whatever the jury decides, the moral case was settled long ago. Jamaica's creative industry is worth far more than Jamaica has ever been paid for it. This lawsuit — and the industry it has put on trial — is the proof.
TruthScore
82 Strong
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