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ARTICLE · 13 OCTOBER 2026

Kraftwerk Sampling Ruling: Pastiche Finds Its Rhythm

Lewis Silkin
Lewis Silkin
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Lewis Silkin

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Germany's highest civil court has ruled that an unlicensed sample from Kraftwerk's 1977 track "Metall auf Metall" used in a hip hop song qualifies as lawful pastiche under EU copyright law. This landmark decision, concluding a nearly 30-year legal dispute, establishes new parameters for when sampling can constitute creative engagement rather than mere copying, though it stops short of providing blanket protection for all unauthorized samples.

European UnionIntellectual Property
Alexander Fewtrell
Alexander Fewtrell
Oliver Greenaway
Oliver Greenaway
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Germany's highest civil court has held that the use of an unlicensed sample of Kraftwerk's 1977 track "Metall auf Metall" in a German hip hop song is lawful as a pastiche. The ruling has the potential to give more freedom with sampling but confirms that pastiche is not a catch-all defence.

Background 

Kraftwerk are pioneers of electronic music and quintessentially Deutsch. They are renowned across the world and have been sampled countless times.

This particular dispute began after a two-second rhythm sequence from Kraftwerk's 1977 track "Metall auf Metall" was sampled by Moses Pelham and used for the beat in Sabrina Setlur's "Nur mir" in 1997. 

The dispute has run for nearly 30 years, representing one of the longest running and most significant copyright disputes in European legal history.

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