Beyoncé received a new lawsuit for alleged copyright infringement related to “Alien Superstar,” one of the songs from her album Renaissance. Hirose Enterprise and producer Shuji Hirose maintain that the singer used a fragment of “Moonraker,” a song performed by John Holiday, without authorization, and they are questioning the license that her team obtained after the album’s release.
According to court documents obtained by TMZ, the plaintiffs dispute the use of the “spoken intro” of “Moonraker” at the beginning of “Alien Superstar,” released in 2022. Hirose claims that his company owns the rights to the song and that the material was incorporated into the production without the corresponding authorization before Renaissance reached the public.
The central point of the dispute is who actually had the authority to grant those rights. According to the lawsuit, Beyoncé’s team obtained a license from John Holiday weeks after the album’s release. However, Hirose maintains that the singer no longer had the power to authorize the use of the material, as he had allegedly transferred his rights to the song decades ago.
The company also asserts that it notified Beyoncé’s company about the alleged infringement, but that the album continued to be marketed, Infobae highlights.
Faced with this situation, Hirose Enterprise is seeking a court order to prevent Beyoncé and the companies involved from continuing to generate revenue from the use of the work. It is also seeking financial compensation, although the amount requested has not been specified.
The new legal action has a direct precedent. In July 2025, Hirose Enterprises filed a lawsuit against Parkwood Entertainment, Sony Music Entertainment, Sony Music Publishing, and Warner Chappell over the same conflict related to “Moonraker.” However, the case was dismissed on June 26, 2026, by federal judge Mark C. Scarsi.
The decision did not determine who held the rights to the song nor did it resolve whether Beyoncé had used the sample improperly. The lawsuit was dismissed due to an administrative error: the plaintiff company did not legally exist when it filed that first legal action.
