Eminem has often paid homage and given back extensively to his home city of Detriot. However, Eminem’s music publishing company, Eight Mile Style, recently sued a local Detroit Ford dealership due to their illegal use of his hit song, “Lose Yourself.”
Eight Mile Style, who controls Eminem’s earlier songs, accused the dealership of copyright infringement in federal court. It is unclear when the company filed the lawsuit, but a local Detroit news source, Local 4, obtained the news on January 28, 2025.
Eight Mile Style’s Legal Grounds
According to the suit, the publishing company is accusing the La Fontaine Ford St. Clair dealership of copyright infringement. The accusation is due to the fact that the dealership allegedly used the song in a series of online advertisements between September and October 2024. Specifically, the dealership allegedly lifted part of the song so they could use it in their sales slogan. The slogan in question is, “You only get one shot to own a Special Edition Detroit Lions F-150.”
The alleged theft came from a sale the dealership put on for customers to purchase a special edition Detroit Lions Ford F-150 truck. According to Local 4, “Eight Mile Style asked a judge to find that the dealer violated their copyright and order it to cease and desist while entering a judgment for damages and profits related to the infringements of the publisher’s copyright.”
Neither Eight Mile Style nor Eminem has released an official comment on the matter, however, the dealership has. The dealership wrote, “At LaFontaine Automotive Group, we take intellectual property rights and copyright compliance very seriously.”
“We want to be very clear: The unauthorized use of this song was the result of actions taken by a third-party vendor marketing, without the knowledge, authorization, or approval of LaFontaine Automotive Group.” “We are working to resolve this matter expeditiously and in good faith,” the dealership concluded.
Per the dealership’s comments, it seems a third-party marketing group is responsible for the mishap. Regardless, Eight Mile Style is still barreling ahead with the lawsuit.
