$1.1M Frozen Royalties: George Clinton Vs. Universal

George Clinton is taking Universal Music Group to court, accusing the label of freezing more than $1.1 million in royalties across his catalog for more than three years. According to court documents obtained by Music Business Worldwide, the Parliament-Funkadelic architect filed the lawsuit Friday, May 15, in federal court in Detroit, alleging UMG withheld 100% of royalties from at least 12 Clinton-related accounts. The complaint claims the freeze includes music tied to Parliament, Clinton’s Clijo Productions, and even his production work with the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Advertisements

At the center of the dispute is a separate copyright fight involving the estate of late P-Funk keyboardist Bernie Worrell. Worrell’s estate had argued that he was entitled to co-ownership of certain Parliament-Funkadelic recordings, but a federal judge ruled in Clinton’s favor in September 2025, finding the claims were barred by the Copyright Act’s statute of limitations. UMG had already been dismissed from that case in October 2023.

The case lands in the middle of a larger, decades-long fight over Clinton’s music rights. Clinton, 84, helped shape modern funk through Parliament-Funkadelic, whose influence later stretched into hip-hop, G-funk, and artists from Dr. Dre to Kendrick Lamar. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Parliament-Funkadelic in 1997 and entered the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2025. Clinton is seeking more than $1.1 million in damages, the release of all withheld royalties, a full accounting, an injunction blocking further withholding, and attorneys’ fees.

Source: Complex