Tupac Shakur photographer suing retailers over ‘unlicensed’ merchandise

A photographer has filed a lawsuit against retail giants Macy’s and Urban Outfitters for allegedly selling merchandise featuring his iconic photos of Tupac Shakur without permission.
According to editors at TMZ, photographer Chi Modu, who has taken pictures of stars including the late Dear Mama rapper and the Notorious B.I.G., among others, is alleging the retailers sold items produced by a merchandising company he previously had an agreement with.
However, he claims the deal expired in July 2016.
The two T-shirts, which feature Tupac wearing a white bandanna with his name emblazoned across them, were produced and distributed to the retail giants, who allegedly sold them to customers without permission.
As well as seeking damages, Modu has reportedly requested the return of all profits the retailers made from the shirts.
Modu spoke about his memorable photographic session with the late rapper in an interview with The Guardian in May (17).
“I first photographed Tupac Shakur in Atlanta, back in 1994. He turned up half an hour early, but my equipment malfunctioned and I had to send him away,” he told the British publication. “I was so embarrassed, I offered to fly to whatever city he was headed to, to do the shoot there. But he didn’t mind sticking around and turned up early the next day. He did 20 press-ups and said: ‘Let’s go, brother!'”
Earlier this year, photographer Danny Clinch launched a suit against Urban Outfitters and popular retail store Forever 21 for selling T-shirts featuring his photos of Tupac. The portraits originally appeared on the 1993 and 1996 covers of Rolling Stone.