Bad Bunny and music stars want a copyright case over reggaeton beats thrown out

Bad Bunny and some of the music industry's biggest stars want a lawsuit that alleges copyright infringement of a 1989 song thrown out of court.

Lawyers from Freundlich Law representing Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio, known as the superstar Bad Bunny, filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit Thursday, arguing the musical elements in question don't fall under copyright protection.

A lawsuit filed by lawyers for Jamaican reggae producers Steely & Clevie claimed more than 100 artists and labels infringed copyright on a rhythm in their song "Fish Market."

Bad Bunny's lawyers argue the plaintiffs are attempting to "monopolize practically the entire reggaeton musical genre for themselves" by claiming copyright ownership of musical compositions sampled by over 100 artists in more than 1,600 songs. Bad Bunny himself is accused in the lawsuit of copyright infringement for 77 songs, the motion said.

The foundational drum beats come from Jamaican dancehall duo Steely & Clevie, composed of Wycliffe Johnson and Cleveland Browne, who co-wrote "Fish Market" in 1989. The heavily sampled "Dem Bow" rhythm comes from a song of the same name co-authored with Shabba Ranks, which itself takes from "Fish Market." Johnson passed away in 2009.

The lawsuit was originally filed in 2021.

Bad Bunny's lawyers claim the characteristics cited by the plaintiffs, including rhythm, instrument choices and parts of synthesized sounds and timbre, are the building blocks of the entire genre, and that potentially copyrightable elements, such as melody and lyrics, are not included in the plaintiffs' case.

Another motion to dismiss was filed by firm Pryor Cashman, representing almost 90 defendants including Pitbull, Justin Bieber, Karol G, Enrique Iglesias, Ricky Martin, Jason Derulo, J Blavin, Ozuna, Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee, Becky G, Rosalia and Diplo on Thursday. The motion argued technical faults in the copyright claim.

This motion holds the plaintiffs' claim "fails to plead facts showing what works plaintiffs actually own and on which they have standing to sue."

"Plaintiffs claim ownership of an entire genre of basic core music - the 'rhythm of "reggaeton"' based upon simple, rote, unprotectable common music elements, which are nothing more than common drum beats of single notes," another motion filed by WK Records, Pitbull's Mr. 305 Inc., Maluma and 11 other defendants claimed.

In May, a Manhattan jury ruled that Ed Sheeran's "Thinking out Loud" did not infringe on the copyright of the Marvin Gaye song "Let's Get It On." Pryor Cashman also represented Sheeran in the case.

Stars from Taylor Swift to Led Zeppelin have been involved in legal battles over their music.

CNN has reached out to the plaintiffs for comment.

CNN's Lauren del Valle, Nicki Brown and Sabrina Souza contributed to this report.