Wu-Tang Clan Album Lawsuit: Shkreli vs. PleasrDAO

After renouncing the rights to an unreleased Wu-Tang Clan album, Martin Shkreli is being sued for allegedly distributing digital copies of it.

Legal Battle Over Wu-Tang Album Rights

A lawsuit brought on Monday in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York by PleasrDAO claims Shkreli unlawfully distributed copies of “Once Upon a Time in Shaolin” by the Wu-Tang Clan, even though he no longer controlled the rights to the record. The court document states that PleasrDAO paid $4 million in 2021 for exclusive rights to the audio tracks of the record from Shkreli.

Purchased for about $2 million in 2015, Shkreli—who became well-known almost ten years ago for drastically raising the cost of a life-saving medication—builled the Wu-Tang Clan CD. Two years later, he was found guilty in a securities fraud case linked to his hedge fund, leading to a seven-year prison sentence and orders to pay over $7 million. Shkreli sold the much-sought-after Wu-Tang CD to PleasrDAO some time following the order.

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Damages Sought by PleasrDAO

According to the lawsuit, PleasrDAO—which styles itself as a collective focused on producing virtual experiences using “culturally significant media and materials”—planned to selectively disseminate the contents of the album after buying the record. But Shkreli’s ongoing dissemination of the unreleased Wu-Tang audio tracks has “diminished” the album’s value and caused “significant monetary and irreparable harm” to PleasrDAO, claims the lawsuit.

In the court case, PleasrDAO stated, “Shkreli has shown a complete lack of respect for the integrity of the album and the conditions in place to ensure its secrecy.”

PleasrDAO said that between 2022 and 2024, Shkreli distributed at least 50 copies of the CD. More recently, according to the legal complaint, the former executive also allegedly played unreleased album tracks during an X Spaces event on June 9.

Legal documentation suggests PleasrDAO has asked for the seizure of any digital copies of the record still owned by Shkreli. Additionally seeking financial compensation is the crypto group; a court in New York will decide the exact amount.

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