While will.i.am’s shameless pilfering of Boys Noize banger Yeah was the big ‘rip-off’ story of last month, Detroit techno don Kevin Saunderson also had some grievances to air. The DJ launched a public name-and-shame on Italian duo Supernova, whose recent Beatport top-seller Beat Me Back liberally borrows from Saunderson’s 1987 record The Sound; a bold move that kick-started some healthy discussion on sampling and originality in dance music. So, what’s been the fallout?

Speaking to inthemix today as he prepares to bring Hi-Tek Soul to Creamfields alongside Derrick May, Saunderson reveals that all is good between the two parties.

“The guys from Supernova were just kids in 1987, so they knew nothing about [my track],” he explained down the line from Detroit. “They came across my track in a loop library, who knows where, and decided to use it. They were a little naïve, if you go by what they say. I’ve sampled before, but you have to use it in a creative way. A lot of young producers don’t try.”

That said, Saunderson tells inthemix that he and Supernova have agreed on a “business structure” that allows further royalties for Beat Me Back to be shared. Good to know the story has a happy ending, unlike anything touched by the hand of will.i.am…

Of course you won’t be pondering the in-and-outs of intellectual property in dance music when Saunderson and May step up at Creamfields for three glorious hours of Hi-Tek Soul. Stay tuned for full interviews with both of the Motor City greats in coming weeks.