'Pharma-bro' Martin Shkreli sued for copying and playing Wu-Tang Clan album publicly

PleasrDAO, the digital art collective that currently owns a one-of-a-kind album by Wu-Tang Clan, is suing disgraced former pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli for allegedly copying the album and playing it publicly for online audiences without permission.

Shkreli had previously owned the album, titled 'Once Upon A Time In Shaolin', having purchased it in 2015 for $2 million. That same year, he was arrested, before being convicted of committing securities fraud in 2017. Shkreli was sentenced to seven years in federal prison and ordered to forfeit nearly $7.4 million in assets, including the Wu-Tang Clan album.

The album was sold to PleasrDAO for $4 million, while Shkreli was in prison – he was released in 2022.

The lawsuit was filed in a Brooklyn federal court earlier this week, and alleges that Shkreli must still follow aspects of the forfeiture order placed upon his assets. One of those, the lawsuit says, requires him to "take[s] all reasonable steps, and bear all costs necessary, to ensure that all the Substitute Assets [i.e., 'Once Upon A Time In Shaolin'] are preserved and maintained in good and marketable condition, and are not damaged, diluted or diminished in value as a result of any actions taken or not taken by the defendant and his representatives".

It argues that Shkreli has violated that forfeiture order by making copies of the one-of-a-kind album and playing it publicly, which he has openly admitted to doing. This past weekend, he posted on X, formerly Twitter, "well, @pleasrdao blocked me from their account so I think I will play the album on Spaces now."

The lawsuit goes on to argue that "any dissemination of the Album's music to the general public greatly diminishes and/or destroys the Album's value, and significantly damages PleasrDAO's reputation and ability to commercially exploit the Album". The collective is therefore calling for seizure of Shkreli's copies of the album, as well as payment for damages.

A contract written into 'Once Upon A Time In Shaolin' says the album cannot be commercially made for sale until 2109. It has, however, been legally played at private listening events.

Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) in Hobart, Tasmania will hold limited-space, ticketed listening events for 'Once Upon A Time In Shaolin' during its Namedropping exhibition from 15th June through the 24th. 

In October 2021, RZA admitted that he regretted selling the album to Martin Shkreli, indicating that the group did so before "it was revealed of his character, of his personality, and all of the insidious things he would go on to do".