‘Eye of the Tiger’ Author Sues Another Conservative Over Use of Song

GOP presidential candidate former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee’s campaign says it refuses “to be bullied” by Frank M. Sullivan III – the founder of Rude Music and co-author of the song “Eye of the Tiger.”

He’s sued Huckabee for having the song playing in the background as Huckabee walked Kim Davis out of a Kentucky jail.

Sullivan previously sued former Speaker of the House and GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich in 2012 over his use of the song during campaign events.

“Mr. Sullivan is demanding an amount of money that exceeds the average yearly salary of a hard-working American simply because a snippet of his song was played briefly at a rally. The campaign offered Mr. Sullivan fair compensation, but that offer was rejected. We refuse to be bullied,” spokesperson for Huckabee Alice Stewart told Breitbart News.

Davis – a Kentucky county clerk – made national headlines when she was jailed for refusing to issue same-sex marriage licenses based on her religious beliefs. Because of the outrage sparked by the Christian and evangelical community over an alleged violation of the First Amendment Freedom of Religion, Huckabee – a former Baptist pastor – held a religious freedom rally outside the jail house where Davis was held.

Rude Music – founded by Sullivan – filed a lawsuit against Huckabee in an Illinois federal court on Wednesday arguing that copyright laws were violated when the song was played at the rally.

The Hollywood gossip news site – TheWrap – reported, “Rude Music claims that Huckabee should have known better because, as a “media-savvy business owner” as well as the author of more than a dozen copyrighted works, the politician “is sophisticated and knowledgeable concerning the copyright laws.””

This isn’t the first time Sullivan has attempted to capitalize on a copyright lawsuit involving this very song, according to CBS News, Sullivan sued former Speaker of the House and Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich in 2012 for playing “Eye of the Tiger” at a campaign appearance.