Chris Brown is facing fresh legal heat after a songwriter filed a lawsuit accusing the R&B superstar of cutting him out of both credit and compensation on two hit records, “Monalisa” and “Sensational.”
the lawsuit
According to a lawsuit, filed Wednesday in Manhattan federal court, songwriter Steve Chokpelle claims the situation dates back to 2020. He was allegedly invited to Brown’s Los Angeles home with Sean Kingston. Chokpelle says Brown asked him to write lyrics for “Monalisa.” The song was originally released by Afrobeats artists, Lojay & Sarz, in 2021 with Brown joining them on the remix a year later. With Brown’s addition, allegedly written by Chokpelle, the song peaked at No. 8 on Billboard’s U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart.
Chokpelle further alleges that he also wrote the lyrics for Chris Brown’s hit “Sensational” in 2021. After hearing the demo, he claims Brown decided to record the song himself. The final version featuring Davido and Lojay appeared as the lead single on Brown’s 2023 album 11:11. The song is now platinum. It also went on to hit No. 1 on Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart and peaked at No. 71 on the Hot 100.
The lawsuit alleges “Sensational” generated over $1 million in revenue, yet Chokpelle says he never received payment or proper credit. He’s now seeking a court declaration naming him an author and copyright owner of both songs, along with compensation from Brown, Kingston, Sony Music Entertainment, and Universal Music Publishing Group.
As of now, Brown has not publicly responded to the allegations.
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