12 Artists Who Legally Sampled Marvin Gaye - Page 3

Depending on whom you ask, Pharrell and Robin Thicke getting peeled for $7.4 million after copying a Marvin Gaye track without permission is either justice being served or a bad legal precedent. The “Magic Man” doesn’t come cheap, but his classics can be legally sampled.

All of this is to say, the matter could’ve been easily avoided for two artists who aren’t exactly paupers. We tracked down 12 artists who legally copied Marvin Gaye as a template. You can insert your own “Got To Give It Up” joke now.

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Photo: Star Trak/Interscope/VEVO

photo: WENN

Kanye West feat. GLC & Consequence – “Spaceship”

When he originally helped bring back the sped-up soul samples previously popularized by DJ Muggs and RZA, Kanye West swing for the fences with the expensive and highly-recognizable “Distant Lover.” That’s not the kind of sample you get away with, and West split some of his royalties with the Gaye Estate.

photo: WENN

Jay Z – “American Dreamin’”

Sean C and LV and Mario Winans delivered Jay Z some soul for his Frank Lucas-inspired 2007 album, American Gangster. If you’re reaching back into the “good old days,” the sound might as well be supplemented with a flip of Marvin Gaye’s “Soon I’ll Be Loving You Again.”

photo: WENN

Nas feat. Snoop Dogg– “Play On Playa”

Marvin Gaye’s “I Want You” was the perfect sound bed for Nas and Snoop Dogg to pop their collar. It was a Queensbridge meets Long Beach affair for “Play On Playa.”

Snoop Dogg – “Vote 4 Snoop”

Snoop Dogg has worn his Soul Era influences proudly since showcasing The Dramatics and Charlie Wilson on his early projects. Snoop reached in the past for “Vote For Snoop” by lifting a sample of Marvin Gaye’s “You’re The Man” off of the 2004 album Welcome 2 Tha Chuuch… Vol. 3.

photo: WENN

Common – “Love Is…”

While he was good for playing instruments or flipping extremely obscure samples, the late J Dilla was just as comfortable flipping a mainstream sample into a completely new composition. Enter Marvin Gaye’s “God Is Love,” which is the basis for Common’s “Love Is…”

photo: WENN

T.I. – “The Introduction”

If you’re going to name your album Trouble Man Heavy Is The Head, it’s a good luck to borrow from Marvin Gaye’s soundtrack from the 1972 blaxploitation flick Trouble Man. Tip and his production team took the hint and ran with it for an album intro.

photo: WENN

50 Cent – “Ghetto Qu’ran”

Given how he seemingly courted trouble at the time, it’s highly likely Columbia shelved 50 Cent’s Power Of The Dollar because they viewed him as a liability and not because he and the Trackmasters couldn’t clear a sample of Marvin Gaye and Diana Ross’ “Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart).”

photo: WENN

Erick Sermon – “Music”

Is “Music” the biggest non-EPMD song of Erick Sermon’s storied career? A limited edition of the Marvin Gaye’s Midnight Love album supplied the foundation for what many consider Sermon’s biggest crossover success to date.

photo: NBC/Universal/WENN

Erykah Badu & D’Angelo – “Your Precious Love”

You’d be hard pressed to find a duo with better raw talent and chemistry than Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell. In 1996, fellow Soulquarians Erykah Badu and D’Angelo teamed up to remake “Your Precious Love.” It was great, and arguably, the only downside was that it was wasted as a soundtrack cut for the stoner comedy High School High.

Method Man & Mary J Blige – “All I Need”

Another Marvin and Tammi inspired cut came in the form of Method Man and Mary J. Blige’s “All I Need.” Meth balanced out Mary’s soulful singing with his rugged bars, and these two ended up with a hit that boosted their already successful careers.

photo: WENN

Jules Santana – “Let’s Go”

Heatmakerz and Dipset went hand in hand during the “Chipmunk Soul” era, and Juelz Santana became a beneficiary of the partnership courtesy of “Let’s Go.”