Cardi B Moves to Dismiss Greasy Frybread Lawsuit, Citing No Copyright Registration
Cardi B has asked a judge in Texas to throw out a lawsuit targeting her 2024 song “Enough (Miami).” Her filing maintains the case is defective from the outset, since the plaintiffs never registered copyright for their track “Greasy Frybread,” so they cannot press a claim within that state.
Cardi B and her record labels—Atlantic Recording Corp. and Warner Music Group—are listed as co-defendants in the motion. It responds to a suit filed by Texas-based artist Sten Joddi and producer Kemikal956, who claim infringement by her track.
Sten Joddi, legally Joshua Frausto, teamed with Miguel Aguilar, who records as Kemikal956, to release “Greasy Frybread” in 2021 on independent outlets. The track later appeared in the FX comedy series Reservation Dogs, drawing regional interest.
Joddi and Aguilar insist that Cardi B’s 2024 single lifted the original melody and bassline. They do not assert any claim regarding the lyrics, focusing solely on the musical elements.
Cardi’s attorneys argue the suit fails without a valid copyright registration. Attorney W. Andrew Pequignot writes in the motion, “It is black-letter law that a copyright registration is required to file a federal claim… The lack of a copyright registration therefore dooms these claims too because, as noted above, a registration is required before bringing any ‘civil action for infringement of the copyright in any United States work,'” pointing out that courts must dismiss any federal claim filed without registration.
The plaintiffs first filed a federal infringement suit, but judges cannot proceed without a registration on file. They then pivoted to a common-law copyright theory, which Pequignot argues is displaced by federal statute.
That complaint lists defamation, misappropriation, and unfair competition claims alongside the infringement count. Cardi B’s team maintains these counts amount to the same fundamental charge of copying her source. Federal law preempts each of these counts.
Cardi B resides in New Jersey. Atlantic and Warner are headquartered in Delaware and New York, with no direct business presence in Texas. The motion contends state courts there lack jurisdiction over the dispute.
Pequignot criticizes shifting claims and inconsistent filing by the producers. The motion asks the judge to dismiss the suit in full and bar revision of the complaint going forward.
