Will.i.am accused of stealing track for new single 'Let's Go'

Chris Brown also features on the single

10:05 17th April 2013

Will.i.am has been accused of stealing a track from house producers Mat Zo and Arty, for his new single 'Let's Go'.

The song sounds almost identical in parts to 'Rebound', which is a dance track produced by Zo and Arty - despite Arty saying that no one had approached Anjunabeats to use the song. Zo has also pointed out that Will.i.am had approached the pair previously about using the song, but they had declined.

Arty wrote on Twitter, "They never cleared rights through Anjunabeats, who's only one label, who ownes the rights for 'Rebound'."

Chris Brown features on the Will.i.am track, and also defended himself over Twitter. The singer posted a series of tweets, saying, "I don't even know who mat zo Or arty is? I ain't got s**t to do wit if ur mad or not. Someone asked for a feature on a record and I did it."

He later deleted that tweet, but kept the follow-up of, "I don't listen to that s**t half the time anyway. #X"

Zo addressed the issue on his Facebook account, writing, "(I'm really glad I deleted my Twitter account so that I'm not inclined to say what I'm about to say in under 140 characters)

"I really and truely appreciate all the support you are giving me and Arty in response to Will I Am's copyright infringement. However, this doesnt excuse the horrific abuse youre sending the way of Will I Am and Chris Brown, and it especially doesnt excuse being racist."

Chris Brown apparently doesn't listen to the 's**t' he features on half the time

He continued, "You dont need to defend me or Arty. Producers often wait their whole careers for a commercial act to f**k up and sample their track without asking permission. Arty and I are not bitter about this, more surprised. We knew Will I Am was interested in this track, but we declined working with him at the time.

"To conclude, perhaps it is better to invest your energy into supporting 'Rebound' instead of spewing s**t at Will I Am and Chris Brown."

The interest in the track has paid off for Arty and Mat Zo, however, with 'Rebound' set to score the duo their first ever UK chart hit this week.

Listen to the two tracks below

Below: the worst Will.i.am crimes against music

Nicki Minaj. A lot of Nicki's music is quite listenable. Her Will.i.am duet 'Check It Out' is anything but.
Macy Gray. Long after everyone stopped caring, Will.i.am was producing her 2007 album, 'Big'. It was anything but.
Nicole Scherzinger. Long before she was a rubbish US X Factor host, Scherzinger teamed up with Will.i.am for her debut single, 'Baby Love'. It was awful, and no one bought it. Boo hoo hoo.
U2. Bono gets everywhere. The band teamed up with Will.i.am in an attempt to get cool in 2009 on the track, 'I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight'. It wasn't quite 'With Or Without You'.
Ricky Martin. Will.i.am worked on Ricky Martin's 2005 album, 'Life'. We've never heard it. We never will.
Hilary Duff. Who? Yeah, exactly. The duo worked together in 2007 on her track, 'Play With Fire'.
Shaggy. The unfaithful reggae star teamed up with Will.i.am in a 2005 attempt to convince fans he was still something of a sex magnet on the track 'Clothes Drop'.
Fergie. The Black Eyed Peas singer is best known for wetting herself in stage during a performance, but she also launched a solo career, which was masterminded by Will.i.am. She gave the world priceless gems such as 'London Bridge' and 'Fergalicious'. Oddly enough, we can't find either on our iPhones...
Britney Spears. Will.i.am producer and starred on the very worst track on Britney's 'Femme Fatale' album, 'Big Fat Bass'.
Flo Rida. The Will.i.am produced track 'In The Ayer' was an example of what happens when two world class tools team up: world class crap.
David Guetta. *shudder* Will.i.am appeared on Guetta's 'Nothing But The Beat' album on track, 'Nothing Really Matters'.
Pussycat Dolls. Will.i.am put his fingers in the PCD pie back in 2005 with their single, 'BEEP'.
Chris Brown. In between beating up Rihanna and smashing up TV studios, Chris Brown recorded the track 'Picture Perfect' with Will.i.am in 2007.
Black Eyed Peas. Year after year after year of multi-million selling shite. THANK YOU VERY MUCH WILL.I.AM.
Cheryl Cole. Nice lass, dreadful music. Will.i.am has steered her career since she appeared on his single, 'Heartbreaker' in 2007.
Will.i.am. If there was any doubt that Will.i.am's worst crime against music was Will.i.am himself, then his Britney Spears track 'Scream & Shout' was the final confirmation the world needed.