Run-DMC sues Walmart, Amazon for $50 million’

ICONIC hip hop group Run- DMC are suing retailers Walmart, Amazon and a handful of others for utilizing their brand without permission.

According to TMZ, the brand is asking for $50million in damages, in a lawsuit that alleges the companies are using its logo for profit.

They claim the retail giants are deceiving consumers into believing their cut-price merchandise is genuine without the brand’s permission.

Founder Darryl McDaniels, the owner of Run- DMC Brand LLC and author of the book Ten Ways Not to Commit Suicide, is the plaintiff in the lawsuit.

The lawsuit lists glasses, hats, t-shirts, patches, wallets and other items as being deceptively sold as though they are distributed by the actual Run- DMC brand.

It states that Walmart and Amazon are ‘advertising, selling, manufacturing, promoting and distributing multiple products with the logo.’

Run- DMC - who are credited for bringing Adidas shoes’ back in style in the late 80s - has a $1.6 million agreement with Adidas, making their logo ‘extremely valuable.’

The complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court in Manhattan and reads: ‘Plaintiff will suffer immediate and irreparable injury, loss, or damage’ unless the infringements are stopped.

Though Walmart and Amazon are the largest of the retailers, the lawsuit has been filed against Jet.com as well - an online retailer that Wal-Mart is purchasing.

Run- DMC originated in the borough of Queens in the early 80s by founding members Joseph ‘Run’ Simmons - better known now as Rev. Run - Darryl ‘D.M.C.’ McDaniels, and the late Jason ‘Jam Master Jay’ Mizell.

The band, a group of three who changed the course of rap history, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2009, becoming the second rap act to be awarded the honor. — wwdailymail