Copyright Criminals

Musical Sampling and Copyright Law

This documentary traces the rise of hip-hop from the urban streets of New York to its current status as a multibillion-dollar industry. COPYRIGHT CRIMINALS examines the creative and commercial value of musical sampling, including the related debates over artistic expression, copyright law, and (of course) money.

For more than thirty years, innovative hip-hop performers and producers have been re-using portions of previously recorded music in new, otherwise original compositions. When lawyers and record companies got involved, what was once referred to as a "borrowed melody" became a "copyright infringement." This film showcases many of hip-hop music's founding figures like Public Enemy, De La Soul, and Digital Underground.

As artists find ever more inventive ways to insert old influences into new material, this documentary asks a critical question, on behalf of an entire creative community: Can you own a sound?