In 2018, Miley got hit with serious legal heat over We Can’t Stop. Jamaican songwriter Michael May, aka Flourgon, dropped a $300 million lawsuit on her, saying she jacked his 1988 reggae banger We Run Things. Talk about a wild claim.
The heart of the beef? Flourgon argued Miley’s song “substantially incorporated” his vocal style, rhythm, and melody. The kicker? Both songs have an almost identical hook. Flourgon’s lyric was, “We run things. Things no run we.” Miley’s? “We run things. Things don’t run we.” It’s somewhat hard to ignore that, right?
May wasn’t just going after Miley Cyrus—he went after her whole crew, including producers Mike WiLL Made-It, Rock City, and the big players over at RCA Records and Sony Music. He wasn’t just looking for a payday, either. He wanted We Can’t Stop to be pulled from sales and performances. Talk about going all in.
We Can’t Stop was a massive hit for Miley, marking the start of her wild Bangerz era. It hit No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, but ironically, it couldn’t even snag the top spot because Blurred Lines was still crushing it at No. 1.
And Blurred Lines had its own legal drama, by the way—remember that whole Marvin Gaye lawsuit? The suit eventually settled, and while the settlement details are tight, both sides agreed to end the case with “prejudice,” meaning it couldn’t be refiled. And that was that.
Miley later opened up about Wrecking Ball—her other iconic track—and admitted she felt less impressed with it over time. “I should f***ing be grateful every day for that song,” she said. “But it doesn’t reflect who I am now.” The same probably goes for We Can’t Stop, but both songs were crucial in shaping her career.
So yeah, while the lawsuit may have fizzled out, it added a twist to Miley’s Bangerz chapter.
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