A producer who accused Drake of copying the chorus of "Janice STFU" has voluntarily dismissed his copyright lawsuit, roughly ten days after filing it. The move follows denials from Drake's team, which called the claims "manufactured and baseless." The dismissal ends the case for now, but the underlying dispute over authorship and documentation raised questions that remain unresolved.
What the Lawsuit Alleged
Aviel Calev Hirschfield, the Portland producer who records as GoodbyeCalev, filed the complaint on October 16 in California federal court. It named Drake, OVO Sound LLC, UMG Recordings Inc. and Universal Music Publishing Inc. According to Rolling Stone, which cited a recent court filing, Hirschfield later dismissed the case voluntarily.
His complaint said he built a chorus with Drake in mind over music from the production duo FnZ, and that he finished a demo around January 25, 2026. He said he sent the demo to producers who had worked with Drake and received no reply. The filing argued that the chorus of "Janice STFU," from the album Iceman, matched his work "in lyrics, melody, and cadence."
Evidence and Disputed Claims
Hirschfield alleged that his manager gave Drake's representatives separate recording files and metadata to support his account, and that Drake's lawyers later asked him to stop publicly claiming authorship. A recording presented as his demo circulated on X, and a legal representative told Pitchfork that the leaked audio matched the version submitted as evidence. Drake's side has maintained that he wrote the song himself. The producer's case depended largely on his account of when the recording was made, a point the public record does not settle.
Shared Musical History
The song's influences were already on record. "Janice STFU" interpolates Lykke Li's 2011 song "I Follow Rivers," and Drake had sampled Li's "Little Bit" on his 2009 mixtape So Far Gone. Hirschfield and Drake also share writing credits on Beyoncé's "Heated," from Renaissance. In a 2023 interview with Willamette Week, Hirschfield said the income from that credit helped him equip his Southwest Portland studio after years working as a rapper, producer and engineer.
What Comes Next
The withdrawn complaint had sought damages and profits tied to the alleged infringement, along with a jury trial, but it did not specify a dollar amount. Because the dismissal was voluntary, the claims are no longer before the court, and neither side's account has been tested at trial. Listeners and industry observers are left with a case that rested on timing, recordings and private communications, none of which has been independently resolved.