Turkish Composer Sues Mos Def Over Sample

Mos Def's visionary take on hip-hop was put on full display with last year's Grammy-nominated 'The Ecstatic.' The album's first track, 'Supermagic,' brought dusty psychedelic vibes over from the Mediterranean -- a trait of the track's beat-maker, Oh No.

There was a little problem, though. The producer sampled the Turkish track 'Ince Ince Kar Yaar,' from iconic Turkish composer Selda Bagcan, who had no idea about her looped participation until she watched the recent Grammy Awards ceremony on television and heard the track. Now, Mos Def is getting a copyright suit thrown his way.

According to Hurriyet Daily News, the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism felt her pain and decided to write the rapper a cease-and-desist letter. Bagcan added the copyright suit, saying that she slaved over those recordings and deserves to get paid if they are used in any way other than what she officially condones.

"Your style is very effective," she said in a statement directed to Mos. "But I expect you to respect the labor of others." Whoa. In her defense, Bagcan has a long history of people ripping her off and trying to put her in jail for her music. "My life was spent in court," she explained. "My trials were meant to intimidate others. My close friend and the legendary name of Anatolian rock music, Cem Karaca, spent his life in exile just like Nazõm Hikmet. Turkey did not own its values, leaving them to loneliness."

OK, we are officially kind of scared of her.