Lil Durk Murder Trial, ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Lawsuit, Bad Bunny Ruling & More Top Music Law News

THE BIG STORY: Two years after he was indicted on murder-for-hire charges, Lil Durk finally went to trial in a Los Angeles federal courtroom — where prosecutors told jurors that the rapper put out a hit on rival Quando Rondo after becoming “consumed with revenge.” The once-rising Chicago drill rapper stands accused of ordering members of his Only the Family (OTF) label crew to kill rival Rondo in retaliation for the 2020 killing of his close friend and collaborator King Von .

Rondo was shot at a Los Angeles gas station in 2022 and survived, but another man known as Lul Pab was killed in the crossfire.

Related Lil Durk Is Going to Trial on Murder-for-Hire Charges.

Here’s What to Know About the Case Dale Morris, Nashville Manager Who Guided Careers of Alabama & Kenny Chesney, Dies at 89 HYBE Pledges Over $300k for Colombia Earthquake Recovery In opening statements, Durk’s defense strategy quickly emerged: To pin the murder on co-defendant Kavon “Vonnie” Grant.

They said Grant had access to Durk’s credit cards and had framed him once he was caught: “He thought, ‘Oh man, I’ve got an insurance policy,’” Durk’s attorney told the jury.

“I’ve got a big fish I can give them.” For more, go read Billboard ’s explainer on the case and full coverage of the first day — which also featured argument over prosecutor’s controversial decision to use Durk’s rap lyrics as evidence.

And stick with Billboard for updates as the trial moves ahead.

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Other top stories this week… -Netflix was hit with a trademark lawsuit over the massively successful KPop Demon Hunters , filed by a Christian metal band that’s used the name Demon Hunter for decades. – Bad Bunny won’t be repaid the $500,000 he spent beating a copyright lawsuit over a sample on Un Verano Sin Ti after a judge ruled that such a penalty was unwarranted and “would send the wrong message.” -A settlement was reached in a lawsuit filed over Rihanna ’s Smurfs movie song, a case that claimed Paramount never paid a songwriter for writing it because it was “mad” at the star for budget overruns. -A California appeals court ruled that a woman who was scammed out of more than $300,000 by a Kenny Chesney impersonator can’t sue the country superstar . – Ariana Grande won a court order allowing her to subpoena online platforms so that she can unmask the identities of hackers who she says have leaked her unreleased content.