Rick Astley Settles Lawsuit Against Yung Gravy

Rick Astley has reportedly agreed to settle his lawsuit against rapper Yung Gravy out of court. The "Never Gonna Give You Up" singer sued Yung Gravy – whose real name is Matthew Hauri – back in January, accusing him of of imitating Astley's voice in his song "Betty (Get Money)." According to a report by PEOPLE, Astley and Hauri's teams agreed to an undisclosed settlement on Tuesday, Sept. 26.

Court documents show that Hauri filed a notice of settlement on Tuesday, while Asley filed a notice of dismissal. The lawsuit began back in January in Los Angeles, California as a copyright infringement case. It is not entirely over yet – there is a hearing scheduled for Nov. 8 to settle the matter once for all, but it sounds like that will be a formality. Whatever exchange took place between the two musicians, it compensated Astley for the lost income and any other sleight he felt.

"Betty (Get Money)" prominently features a sample of "Never Gonna Give You Up," using it particularly in the context of the internet meme it has become. However, part of the song also seems to feature Astley's voice which is not covered under the fair use of the sample. Astley's lawyer, Richard Busch, made the case that this "deliberate and nearly indistinguishable imitation" lent legitimacy to Hauri's song that his client should have been paid for.

"The public could not tell the difference. The imitation of Mr. Astley's voice was so successful the public believed it was actually Mr. Astley singing," the lawsuit read. "A license to use the original underlying musical composition does not authorize the stealing of the artist's voice in the original recording. So, instead, they resorted to theft of Mr. Astley's voice without a license and without agreement."

Back in August of 2022, Hauri gave an interview where he confirmed that the soundbite was not Astley but was impressionist Nick Seeley, who was ultimately named in Astley's lawsuit as well. He told Billboard: "My boy Nick, who does a lot of sample replays and recreating original samples, we basically remade the whole song. Had a different singer and instruments, but it was all really close because it makes it easier legally."

Hauri, 27, has become a memetic success in his own right over the last few years. He started releasing songs on SoundCloud and soon worked his way up to a record deal. His breakout song "Mr. Clean" is certified Platinum and he has released five studio albums, one mixtape and eight EPs. His latest release is a single called "Nightmare on Peachtree Street," but there's no word on what he is working on next.