Bad Bunny seeks $465,612 in legal fees after winning ‘Enséñame a Bailar’ lawsuit

Bad Bunny is asking a court to order Nigerian record label emPawa Africa to pay $465,612 in legal fees after the singer successfully defeated a copyright lawsuit over his song “Enséñame a Bailar.”

The legal dispute began in May 2024 when Nigerian producer Dera, whose real name is Ezeani Chidera Godfrey, filed a lawsuit claiming the track from Bad Bunny’s album Un Verano Sin Ti included an uncleared sample. According to the complaint, the song allegedly used elements from “Empty My Pocket,” a 2019 track he produced for Nigerian artist Joeboy.

However, the case collapsed earlier this year after missed court deadlines and procedural issues. On March 9, a judge dismissed the lawsuit after Godfrey failed to attend a Feb. 5 discovery hearing and did not submit a required filing by March 6 to continue the case, according to Billboard.

The complications came after Godfrey’s attorneys withdrew from the lawsuit in January, citing “irreparable differences” over legal strategy. Meanwhile, emPawa Africa — the label associated with the case — had already been dismissed as a plaintiff in February after failing to meet multiple court deadlines.

Following the dismissal, Bad Bunny’s legal team filed a motion on March 23 requesting that the label cover the artist’s legal costs. In the filing, his lawyers argued that the lawsuit never had a valid legal basis.

They wrote that the case was “meritless from the beginning and should never have been brought.” According to the motion, the label continued pushing the claim despite weak evidence.

Bad Bunny’s attorneys further alleged that “Empawa filed and aggressively litigated it, apparently hoping that Bad Bunny’s wealth, prominence, and desire to avoid attorneys’ fees and bad publicity would enable Empawa to extract an undeserved, multi-million-dollar settlement.”

The singer’s legal team also maintained that the disputed sample had been properly cleared. They said permission was obtained through Lakizo Entertainment, which had distributed the original song at one point.

According to the filing, when the label was asked to present evidence during the discovery process, emPawa Africa responded with what the lawyers described as “frivolous objections” and delays. Eventually, the label’s attorneys withdrew and emPawa Africa did not hire new counsel to continue the case.

The motion states: “When faced with an imminent court order that would require it to explain how it owned Empty and Lakizo did not, Empawa chose instead to abandon its claims altogether.”

Bad Bunny’s legal team also accused the label of trying to “confuse the public about” the artist’s “integrity and the true ownership of Enséñame.”

Despite seeking fees from emPawa Africa, Bad Bunny is not requesting payment from producer Godfrey. In a footnote, the filing explains that the artist believes Godfrey “was not primarily responsible for the prosecution of the lawsuit, nor did he finance the lawsuit.”

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