Famed Jamaican choreographer Dr. L’Antoinette Stines is suing Jay-Z and Beyonce for he “Black Effect,” claiming she felt “artistically raped.”
The 2018 joint album EVERYTHING IS LOVE done by The Carters, a combination of Jay-Z and Beyonce, had a few stand out tracks with one of them being “Black Effect.” Now almost two years after the release of the project, the Jamaican artiste whose inspiring vocals appeared at the beginning of the song is mentioning that she was never given the right credit or compensation for the work done.
The leading voice is none other than that of Dr. L’Antoinette Osunide Stines. She is a pioneer in Jamaican dancer, choreographer, author, actor, and director who founded L’Acadco, A United Caribbean Dance Force. Stines, who has been dancing professionally since the 1970s, mentioned that she is known for her “artistry and wisdom,” which is the reason The Carters requested her in early 2018. The call was to equip them with dancers for a music video to promote their upcoming tour that year, presumably On The Run II.
In the federal court documents obtained by TMZ, Stines mentions that she provided The Carters with dancers as contracted and promised, but then the power couple wanted to record her views on love. According to Stine, she was told that the interview would simply be a part of the video being used for “promotional purposes” and not in an officially released song.
In the lawsuit filed on Tuesday, June 16, 2020, the longtime dancer expressed at how surprised she was when she heard the track, “Black Effect,” since the first 1 minute and 30 seconds of the track is just her voice expressing her take on love. The suit mentioned that Dr. Stines felt “artistically raped” after hearing the song.
Dr. Stine did confirm that she had signed a contract, but she had no time to go through the ins and outs of the document because it was provided to her on the very day of the shoot. She signed the contract after the Carters’ representatives told her there was nothing to worry about, alluding to the fact that only clauses pertaining to the promotional video were included.
The fact that she was not given time to review the contract, nor was she properly approached or compensated for her vocal work, has forced her to file the suit. She is suing JAY-Z and Beyonce for copyright infringement and violation of her right to publicity and damages. She is also seeking to be added to the writing credits of the song, which would mean monetary compensation.
The album EVERYTHING IS LOVE came in one place short of debuting at number 1 on the Billboard 200 charts back in 2018. However, it still managed to become a gold-selling record.
