Wednesday, August 12, 2026 - Beyoncé is facing a fresh copyright lawsuit over her 2022 hit “Alien Superstar,” with a company called Hirose Enterprise and producer Shuji Hirose alleging that the song uses material from “Moonraker,” a track performed by John Holiday.
The dispute centers on the spoken-word introduction heard at the beginning of Beyoncé’s song, with the plaintiffs claiming it was used without the necessary authorization. They are seeking unspecified damages from Beyoncé and several music companies connected to the track.
The legal battle comes just weeks after an earlier lawsuit over the same “Alien Superstar” sample was dismissed by a federal judge. In June, Judge Mark C. Scarsi threw out Hirose Enterprises’ case because the company had not legally existed when the original lawsuit was filed.
Importantly, the judge did not rule on whether the sample itself was properly cleared, leaving the underlying copyright dispute unresolved.
The renewed lawsuit puts one of the standout tracks from Beyoncé’s Renaissance album back under legal scrutiny and could reignite questions about ownership and sample clearances in major music releases.
Beyoncé’s team has previously maintained that the relevant sample was cleared, while Hirose argues that it controlled rights that should have been included in that clearance.
With the new case now drawing attention, the dispute could become another closely watched copyright fight involving one of the world’s biggest recording artists.
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