In the latest chapter in the legal battle over the Wu-Tang Clan’s Once Upon a Time in Shaolin, Martin Shkreli admitted he doesn’t know how many people have copies of the one-copy-only album.
Back in June, digital art collective PleasrDAO — which purchased Shaolin from Shkreli in 2021 — sued the convicted pharmaceutical exec for $4 million, claiming that he made copies of and publicly disseminated what was supposed to be a one-of-a-kind LP.
As part of the ongoing legal drama over the album, a judge ordered Shkreli to hand over all his copies (digital and otherwise) of Once Upon a Time in Shaolin in August.
However, in a sworn statement earlier this week and obtained by Billboard, Shkreli admitted that while he turned over all of his copies, it’s “highly likely” that other people besides himself have a copy of the album and that he can’t remember who exactly would have copies.
“Because I shared the musical work several times several years ago, I cannot recall each and every time that I have shared the musical work,” Shkreli said. “It is possible, and indeed I find it highly likely, that one of the many people who viewed, heard, or otherwise accessed the musical work via my social media recorded the musical work and retains a copy of the same.”
PleasrDAO’s lawsuit against Shkreli — which alleged Shkreli broke the original purchase agreement by retaining a copy of Shaolin — outlined numerous occasions where he seemed to admit to playing the album on his livestreams or making copies. For instance, on a June 30, 2022, stream, Shkreli said, “Of course, I made MP3 copies, they’re like hidden in safes all around the world… I’m not stupid. I don’t buy something for two million dollars just so I can keep one copy.”
The lawsuit also contained more recent statements from Shkreli, like such tweets from earlier this year: “LOL I have the mp3s you moron” and “I literally play it in my discord all the time.” The suit also cited a YouTube video from this past May, where Shkreli allegedly said he “burned the album and sent it to like, 50 different chicks,” then quipped, “Do you know how many blowjobs that album got me?”
