Universal Music Group and Concord Music Group have filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Quince, the direct-to-consumer fashion startup that, according to the complaint, has “found its success by eliminating ‘middlemen’ usually used by traditional retailers.”
Starting in fashion, the company has since expanded into luggage, bedding, and other product categories. From its inception, “social media has been Quince’s key advertising and promotional tool,” the complaint states, noting that the company’s growth has been attributed specifically to its presence on platforms including TikTok and Instagram. Quince’s Instagram account alone has 1 million followers.
The company raised a $500 million Series E in March at a $10.1 billion valuation — more than double the $4.5 billion valuation it achieved in its Series D less than a year earlier. The company says its annual revenue has surpassed $1 billion.
The complaint, filed on April 16 in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, lists 67 sound recordings and 71 musical compositions in an exhibit described as an “illustrative, non-exhaustive” list of works allegedly infringed. The company is accused of “rampant and brazen infringement” by UMG and Concord.
The works span music by artists including Sabrina Carpenter, Billie Eilish, Chappell Roan, Olivia Rodrigo, Lana Del Rey, Ariana Grande, Drake, ABBA, Fleetwood Mac, Britney Spears, Coldplay, and Diana Ross.
The plaintiffs include UMG Recordings, Capitol Records, and Concord, alongside six Universal Music Publishing entities. You can read the filing in full here.
Quince, officially registered as Last Brand, Inc., was founded in 2018 and has built its brand largely through social media marketing and paid influencer partnerships.
“Quince surely is aware that its conduct constitutes copyright infringement, given that it is a sophisticated, multi-billion dollar global operation.”
Complaint filed by UMG & Concord
The complaint notes that Quince’s head of brand, who previously worked at Spotify, has publicly stated that “because Quince isn’t ‘getting behind a logo or brand name,’ it primarily relies on influencers and creators to spread the word about its clothes and bedding,” and that the company works with about 300 creators a month.
“Quince surely is aware that its conduct constitutes copyright infringement, given that it is a sophisticated, multi-billion dollar global operation,” the complaint states. “Moreover, Quince was notified that it was infringing Plaintiffs’ copyrighted works over a year ago. Nevertheless, Quince continues to infringe. Quince’s infringement is therefore willful and deliberate.”
The lawsuit alleges that Quince and its influencer partners used plaintiffs’ works, including recordings by Sabrina Carpenter, Fleetwood Mac, Britney Spears, and Etta James, as soundtracks in promotional videos, without obtaining a license.
It also alleges that Quince “recognizes the importance of music in its advertising,” citing an example in which the company reposted an influencer’s paid partnership video on its own account but “made only one substantive change: replacing the music” with one of the plaintiffs’ copyrighted works.
Some of the infringing videos were tagged as containing “Original Audio” despite clearly featuring copyrighted music. The complaint argues that this “shows that Quince itself directly copied Plaintiffs’ music,” since social media platforms define “Original Audio” as audio created by the user.
According to the complaint, the plaintiffs first notified Quince of the alleged infringement via a demand letter on September 6, 2024. Quince’s counsel responded on November 4, 2024, stating that “Quince believes that it has fully addressed the copyright concerns.”
“Plaintiffs discovered that Quince’s representations were false,” the complaint states. In April 2025, plaintiffs’ employees independently discovered further unauthorized uses on Quince’s social media accounts, and a subsequent investigation “revealed not only new infringing uses of Plaintiffs’ works, but also that uses that existed prior to September 6, 2024 remained online, contrary to Quince’s representations.”
The complaint alleges that infringement continued into 2026, with at least seven more infringing posts in March 2026 alone, featuring works by artists including Olivia Dean, Justin Bieber, and Zara Larsson.
The filing also points to Quince job listings, including a Creative Strategy Director role and a Brand Partnership & Influencer Outreach Senior Associate position, to argue that the company maintains a high level of creative control over influencer content, including by “providing creative direction and guidance to creators” and mandating “reshoots” of content.
The suit brings four counts: two for direct copyright infringement (on behalf of the record company and music publisher plaintiffs respectively), plus contributory and vicarious infringement claims. The plaintiffs are seeking statutory damages of up to $150,000 per work infringed, as well as actual damages, profits, attorneys’ fees, and a permanent injunction.
The lawsuit is the latest by music companies against brands accused of using copyrighted music in social media marketing without permission.
The pattern dates back to energy drink company Bang Energy, which was sued by Sony Music in 2021 and by Warner Music Group in 2022 over the unauthorized use of music in social media posts. Courts found Bang Energy liable for direct copyright infringement, and those rulings are cited as precedent in the UMG/Concord complaint against Quince.
Sony Music has since sued fitness brand Gymshark (settled out of court in 2022), cosmetics brand OFRA, Marriott Hotels (which settled in October 2024), and the University of Southern California (which also recently settled). Sony has also sued DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse over similar claims.
Warner Music Group has sued cookie chain Crumbl, shoe retailer DSW, and fashion retailer PacSun. UMG previously sued Brinker International, the owner of Tex-Mex restaurant chain Chili’s. Production music house APM, jointly owned by Sony and UMG, has sued Johnson & Johnson.
DSW has notably fought back, filing its own lawsuit against UMG, Sony, and BMG seeking a court declaration that its social media posts did not infringe any copyrights — arguing that the music was covered by license agreements between labels and social media platforms.Music Business Worldwide
