Ariana Grande Sued for Posting Photos of Herself on Social Media
Ariana Grande is at the center of a very interesting lawsuit — the singer is being sued for posting photos of herself on her Instagram page.
On August 17, the “thank u, next” singer posted photos of herself in a grey sweatshirt, holding a clear bag that reads Sweetener, which is the name of her previous album and current tour. The only problem is that she didn’t first obtain permission from the paparazzi photographer.
Now, Robert Barbera, the man who snapped the pics, says Grande had no right to post them without asking for permission or paying him.
Since posting, they’ve racked up more than 3.3 million likes from her 154 million followers. At least one of the photos is still on her page.
Barbera is asking for either the profits from the photos of $25K for each, TMZ reports.
“[Grande] infringed [Barbera’s] copyright in the Photographs by reproducing and publicly displaying the Photographs on the Instagram Page,” he wrote in his lawsuit, which was obtained by BuzzFeed News. “[Grande] is not, and has never been, licensed or otherwise authorized to reproduce, publically display, distribute and/or use the Photographs.”
The lawsuit comes on the heels of Grande imposing strict rules for outside photographers at her Sweetener World Tour, which is currently underway.
According to Buzzfeed, paparazzi earnings have tanked in the age of social media. Grande is among several other celebs, including Gigi Hadid, Kim Kardashian and Jennifer Lopez, who have come under fire for posting photos without proper credit.
