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TIMES CARIBBEAN ENTERTAINMENT NEWS | September 7, 2026

Dancehall star Masicka is facing a federal copyright lawsuit in the United States after a woman who claims she authored material connected to four of his songs took the dispute to court.

Melissa Mais, also known online as Melissa Maze, filed the action against Masicka — whose given name is Javaun Nicholas Fearon — in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia on August 25, 2026. The matter, Mais v. Fearon, is listed as a copyright action under case number 1:26-cv-02818.

The lawsuit represents a major escalation in a dispute that had already spilled into the digital music space earlier this year.

According to the material reviewed by Times Caribbean, four Masicka tracks — “Whites,” “Rich Sex,” “Mute” and “Scope” — were removed from his official YouTube channel following copyright complaints.

Mais alleges that she wrote most of the disputed material in May 2023 and claims that her work was later used without her permission or appropriate compensation. She reportedly filed a Digital Millennium Copyright Act takedown notice with YouTube in February, which preceded the removal of the recordings.

However, an online takedown is not the same as a judicial finding of copyright infringement. Platform procedures can temporarily remove disputed content while questions over ownership and authorship remain unresolved.

That distinction is important.

Masicka’s camp has firmly rejected the allegations.

His team has maintained that the songs released under his name were written by him and distributed through legitimate channels, while suggesting that inaccurate claims submitted through automated copyright systems can disrupt legitimate releases.

A central issue now facing the court could be evidence showing how the allegedly protected material was created, communicated and ultimately accessed.

Mais has acknowledged that she has never spoken directly with Masicka, and the available material states that she has not yet established how he allegedly obtained access to the songs she says she wrote.

The legal development becomes even more unusual because Mais reportedly filed a separate copyright lawsuit on the same day against Korean pop group BTS and entertainment company HYBE, also in Virginia’s Eastern District.

But the filing of either lawsuit does not prove wrongdoing.

The allegations will have to withstand court scrutiny, and the defendants will have opportunities to challenge the claimant’s evidence, ownership assertions and legal standing.

For Masicka, one of Jamaica’s internationally recognised contemporary dancehall performers, the case puts renewed attention on an increasingly important side of the Caribbean music business: songwriting credits, intellectual property ownership and digital copyright enforcement.

Music can travel around the world within hours. So can a copyright dispute.

The key question is now for the federal court process to determine: who legally owns the disputed creative material connected to the four tracks?

Until evidence is tested, arguments are heard or a settlement is reached, the claims against Masicka remain allegations — not findings of infringement.

Times Caribbean will continue to follow developments in the case.