Court Rules In X’s Favor

An aspiring Philadelphia songwriter who claims he created the beat forXzibit‘s song “X” will pay a stiff penalty for filing a lawsuit that was deemed frivolous by a federal appeals court.

The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled March 23rd that Michael Lowe’s legal claim – which named several record companies and ones of the song’s credited authors, Dr. Dre – was doomed from the start, even if it was true that he contributed to the song.

Lowe claimed he wrote the beat then presented it to rap producer Scott Storch in hopes of getting it passed along to Dr. Dre. In a legal deposition, Lowe said he never expected any compensation.

The court ruled that if Lowe gave the track freely, he couldn’t sue over it.

Meanwhile, Storch has consistently maintained that Lowe had nothing to do with the song.

The judge upheld a lower court order that Lowe pay Dr. Dre legal fees and court costs, which amount to about $35,000.

“X,” which is featured on Xzibit’s album Restless, lists songwriting credits for Xzibit, Dr. Dre and Melvin Bradford, a rapper who goes by Mel Man.