| Prince’s new EP has reportedly been pulled from iTunes and streaming services following a lawsuit filed against its producer |
On Wednesday (19.04.17), it was reported that the late ‘Purple Rain’ hitmaker’s estate were to sue George Ian Boxill if he went ahead with the release, for violating an agreement that he “would not use any recordings or property in any way whatsoever” that he worked on with the music legend, who tragically passed away from an accidental overdose on April 21.
And now, the EP including the title track ‘Deliverance’, which was already available on Apple Music, Google Play, and Amazon, has been removed in a direct result of the lawsuit.
According to TMZ, a federal judge is reportedly on the estate’s side and has ruled that Boxill has allegedly been told to give the recordings back to them.
Boxill had planned to mark the one-year anniversary of the death of the ‘Kiss’ singer by bringing out the mini album of previously-unheard material.
However, according to claims made in the lawsuit, the producer had signed a confidentiality agreement when he recorded the tracks between 2006 and 2008 and agreed all recordings would “remain Prince’s sole and exclusive property.”
According to the estate, the producer refused a demand to return the recordings last month, and they believe the release of the music would harm their business interests.
The lawsuit argued the release of the recordings would “deprive Prince (and now the estate) from choosing what is released to the public and when.”
Title track ‘Deliverance’ was already out until now, while the other tracks, ‘Man Opera’ , ‘I Am’, ‘Touch Me’, ‘Sunrise Sunset’. ‘No One Else’ and an extended version of ‘I Am’, were due to be released on the anniversary of Prince’s death on Friday (21.04.17).
Boxill previously said he felt the release of the EP would “bring comfort” to the music legend’s fans.
He said: “I believe ‘Deliverance’ is a timely release with everything going on in the world today, and in light of the one-year anniversary of his passing. I hope when people hear Prince singing these songs it will bring comfort to many.”