Industry experts told New Zealand campaign use of Eminem-esque song OK

The copyright infringement case between Eminem's publishers and New Zealand's National Party continued today with a campaign manager admitting she raised concerns about the use of a song in a 2014 campaign spot that closely emulated Eminem's hit "Lose Yourself."

Jo de Joux, the case's first defense witness, told the High Court in Wellington she expressed reservations about using a track titled "Eminem Esque" because of possible copyright infringement. She was also worried Eminem "had been associated with hate speech," according to the Associated Press.
De Joux said she did not seek legal advice or seek approval from Eminem's camp. However, she said she sought advice from industry experts, who told her using the track was fine because it was part of a licensed music library. She said she was concerned because during a previous campaign she said she’d received complaints about the use of a Coldplay song.

“I was therefore adamant that the party did not want to have to deal with any such complaints during the 2014 campaign,” she told the court. “I needed absolute reassurance that the track could be legitimately used by the party before I was willing to recommend that we proceed.”

The case started Monday. Yesterday, "Lose Yourself" guitar player told the court he thought "Eminem Esque" was a "blatant rip-off" and played the iconic riff to the court.

Watch the spot below: