Poet Sues Insane Clown Posse for Allegedly Stealing Poem

BY Josiah HughesPublished Mar 30, 2017

Anyone who's ever enjoyed the music of theatrical Detroit hip-hop duo Insane Clown Posse knows that these dudes spit pure poetry. Unfortunately, their powerful prose may not always be their own. After all, a poet has accused the duo of stealing his work in a new lawsuit.

According to the Detroit Free Press [via Stereogum], Ohio poet Stanley Gebhardt has sued the duo of Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope for allegedly ripping off his poem "But You Didn't."

The poem was copyrighted in 1993 and published as part of A 2nd Helping Of Chicken Soup For The Soul in 1994. Since then, it has been circulated in an audio recording dubbed "Violent J's Poem."

While the recording was never included on any official ICP releases, it's often attributed to Violent J. 

"It's a verbatim rendition of my client's artistic, copyrighted poetic work," Gebhardt's attorney Michael Dezsi told the Free Press. The lawsuit demands that the duo stop using the recording and pay monetary damages to Gebhardt.

While they haven't publicly acknowledged the case just yet, don't expect a performance of "Violent J's Poem" at the Canadian Juggalo Weekend next month.

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