Kendall and Kylie Jenner reach settlement with Tupac's photographer over 'vintage' T-shirts
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Kendall and Kylie Jenner have reportedly reached a settlement with Tupac’s photographer over the unauthorized use of his work on their “vintage” T-shirt collection.
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The famous duo found themselves facing intense social media backlash last year after their new clothing collection debuted. The Kendall + Kylie One of One tops, which retailed for $125, featured images of rappers including Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G., and album artwork from Pink Floyd, Metallica and more. On top of the artists' images, the shirts were superimposed with pictures of the Jenners’ faces, their Instagram posts and the brand’s “KK” logo.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The shirts were almost immediately removed from their website after people began criticizing the Jenners for using musicians’ artwork. Even Biggie’s mom, Voletta Wallace, spoke out, slamming the sisters for their “disrespectful, disgusting” designs, saying she had “no idea why they feel they can exploit the deaths of 2pac and my Son Christopher to sell a t-shirt.”
Kendall and Kylie were later sued by photographer Michael Miller, whose image of Tupac appeared on one of their T-shirts without his permission. Miller and the Jenners reached a settlement and Miller has dropped the lawsuit as of Wednesday, according to TMZ. While each party covered their own legal fees, it’s unclear whether money was exchanged for damages.
The reality stars were given a cease and desist letter from Notorious B.I.G.'s estate after the collection first launched, threatening them with a lawsuit if they didn’t stop selling the shirts. The estate lawyer, Julian K. Petty, told TMZ last year “this is misappropriation at its finest.”
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The sisters released a statement shortly after the initial backlash regarding the shirts: "These designs were not well thought out and we deeply apologize to anyone that has been upset and/or offended, especially to the families of the artists. We are huge fans of their music and it was not our intention to disrespect these cultural icons in any way. The tee shirts have been pulled from retail and all images have been removed. We will use this as an opportunity to learn from these mistakes and again, we are very sorry," the Jenners wrote in a statement on Twitter.