Kate Nash accuses Snapchat of using Foundations without permission

Kate Nash took to Twitter and Instagram over the weekend to vent her frustration at Snapchat.

The social media giant had used her 2007 single Foundations to soundtrack a filter where users could wear blue sunglasses and dance with fictional disco lights.

Mashable reports that the network has been using music regularly in this way, last month debuting 30 seconds of a new Ed Sheeran single. Nash accused Snapchat of stealing the rights to the song and using it without correct permission.

In a video uploaded to Twitter and Instagram, Nash – using the filter – says, “Hi, Snapchat. It’s Kate Nash. I can barely hear myself over my own song. But where’s my paycheck?”

On Instagram, Nash wrote a lengthier post. “HI SNAPCHAT it’s KATE NASH I can barely hear myself here on this filter over MY OWN SONG FOUNDATIONS. You know it well. So uhh SHOW ME THE MONEY MATE 💰?!???????? Haven’t been on a record label for 5 years & would really appreciate being paid for the use of my work by a giant corporation!! Google says you were evaluated at 22 billion ahead of IPO last year. So dude where’s my pay cheque….? This is seriously disappointing and fucked up. Another example of a giant corporate company using artists to make money/for an image/or their actual art and not supporting or funding artists and their community in anyway. So messed up. Snapchat screws over independent artists. Add them to the list. #katenash #foundations #snapchat #wtf.”

In a tweet, she elaborated, clarifying that she hadn’t been with a label for five years, asking for retweets from followers.

On Friday (17 February), Snapchat removed the filter. According to them, they did receive a music license from a third-party company that claimed to have full rights to what was played during the filter. Unlike other lenses (like Sheeran’s), the lens was not done in direct coordination with the artist, which explains Nash’s complete confusion.

Foundations was originally released by Fiction Records, which is under Universal Music Group.

We will update this story as we learn more. Check out both of Kate Nash’s posts below.

HI SNAPCHAT it's KATE NASH I can barely hear myself here on this filter over MY OWN SONG FOUNDATIONS. You know it well. So uhh SHOW ME THE MONEY MATE 💰?!???????? Haven't been on a record label for 5 years & would really appreciate being paid for the use of my work by a giant corporation!! Google says you were evaluated at 22 billion ahead of IPO last year. So dude where's my pay cheque….? This is seriously disappointing and fucked up. Another example of a giant corporate company using artists to make money/for an image/or their actual art and not supporting or funding artists and their community in anyway. So messed up. Snapchat screws over independent artists. Add them to the list. #katenash #foundations #snapchat #wtf

A post shared by Kate Nash (@katenash) on

Kate Nash has since published a string of tweets clarifying the progress on this matter.

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