Lola Young is hitting back and taking legal action against a producer who is claiming credit for her song Messy.
Last year the English singer rose to fame with her sleeper hit, which topped the UK Singles Chart.
She’s since gone on to release two albums – This Wasn’t Meant for You Anyway and I’m Only F**king Myself.
But a year on the 24-year-old is facing a dispute after producer and songwriter Carter Lang claimed writing credits on four of her songs including Messy, which now boasts over one billion streams.
He is also seeking money for the four songs.
The BBC has now reported that Young’s team has made a legal filing in London, on behalf of Young and Sony Music Publishing.
The filing is an intellectual property court claim against Lang, who has previously worked with Post Malone and Justin Bieber. He had not yet responded publicly to the suit.
However, Young’s lawyers said they had ‘no choice’ but to take action.
‘Carter’s claims are strongly refuted, and we will not allow Lola’s reputation and integrity to be called into question – particularly so long after the sessions took place and agreements were put in place,’ they said in a statement.
‘Lola has always been authentic in her songwriting process and acknowledges songwriting contributions where appropriate.
‘This dispute has been ongoing for several months and we look forward to the truth being established.’
The four songs involved in the legal dispute have not been named.
However, Lang is one of four producers credited on Messy and also collaborated with Young on several other singles, including Good Books, Crush and This Wasn’t Meant for You Anyway.
He has also contributed to songs on her latest album – including One Thing, Walk All Over You, Post Sex Clarity and Not Like That Anymore.
A source had also told The Sun this week: ‘Lola and her team were stunned when they found out Carter wanted a cut from the success of Messy. Now Messy is only getting more traction, he has come out of the woodwork and is demanding money. It has blindsided everyone.
‘Lola’s legal team have got involved now and are hoping to put this to bed quickly because it is incredibly stressful for a young artist who has only ever supported the people she’s worked with.
‘He’s also claiming he is owed money for three other songs.’
The filing came a day after Young cancelled all of her upcoming shows and events to ‘work on myself’, which came after she collapsed onstage during her performance at the All Things Go festival in New York last weekend.
The next day she shared a statement on social media that revealed she would ‘be going away for awhile’.
‘It pains me to say I have to cancel everything for the foreseeable future. Thank you for all the love and support. I’m so sorry to let anyone down who has bought a ticket to see me, it hurts me more than you know,’ she began.
‘Obviously you will be entitled to a full refund.
‘I really hope you’ll give me a second chance once I’ve had some time to work on myself and come back stronger. Love you all, Lola x.’
While on stage she’d reportedly told fans she’d been through a ‘tricky’ few days.
‘Sometimes life can really make you feel like you can’t continue, but you know what, today I woke up and I made the decision to come here…’ she said, per Billboard.
‘I wanted to be here and perform, I didn’t want to wallow in my sadness… and sometimes life can throw you lemons, and you just gotta make lemonade.’
Earlier this month, she also spoke about her sobriety after checking into rehab last year to address her drug addiction.
‘It’s been a struggle – I’ve definitely had to work on some internal healing while grappling with touring and stuff,’ she told The Guardian.
‘I’ve had to be away for a bit while battling with things. But it teaches you a lot, being addicted to substances. It makes you more empathetic about other people that have gone through that. It’s just a constant journey.’
Metro has contacted representatives for Lola Young and Carter Lang for comment.
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