David Lachapelle, a photographer based in Italy has reached a settlement agreement with pop-star singer, Rhianna. Earlier this year (February 2011), Chapelle sued Rhianna for copyright infringement, claiming that portions of Rhianna’s video including the “pink room scene” was entirely copied from his original photos. In July of this year, a judge granted the case to be sent to litigation based on Chapelle’s evidence which showed clear matches of LaChapelle’s photos and specific scenes used in Rhianna S&M video.
The settlement amount is currently undisclosed but Lachappelle publicist told the New York post this: “This is not personal, it’s strictly business. Musicians commonly pay to sample music or use someone’s beats and there should be no difference when sampling an artist’s visuals.” Lachapelle is said to be happy with the settlement. Now thats a “SMH” moment?