Learnmore Jonasi launches GoFundMe to help with $27 million ‘Lion King’ lawsuit
Complex Comedian Learnmore Jonasi has launched a GoFundMe to help him cover legal costs relating to a lawsuit filed against him by composer Lebo M. “My name is Learnmore Jonasi, and I am reaching out during one of the most difficult moments in my life,” the comedian wrote in the GoFundMe description. “I was recently hit with a […] The post Learnmore Jonasi launches GoFundMe to help with $27 million ‘Lion King’ lawsuit appeared first on NewZimbabwe.com.
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Complex
Comedian Learnmore Jonasi has launched a GoFundMe to help him cover legal costs relating to a lawsuit filed against him by composer Lebo M.
“My name is Learnmore Jonasi, and I am reaching out during one of the most difficult moments in my life,” the comedian wrote in the GoFundMe description. “I was recently hit with a $27 million lawsuit by renowned artist Lebohang Morake (Lebo M) over a joke I made about the Lion King’s opening Zulu chant. What started as a bit of humor has escalated into a devastating legal battle.”
Jonasi said the $20,000 legal costs to fight the costs are beyond his means, and that he intends to fight against the “unjust claim” he’s facing. “I am truly grateful for all your support and kindness. Because of you, I now have a fighting chance with this lawsuit. Your help means more to me than words can explain, and I really appreciate every single one of you.”
Lebo M, the South African composer behind the Elton John and Tim Rice-penned “Circle of Life,” took offense to a joke Jonasi made during an appearance on the One54 Africa podcast.
Jonasi suggested that the opening chant of the song translates to: “Look, there’s a lion. Oh my God.” After Lebo M caught wind of the moment, he filed a $27 million lawsuit against the comedian for allegedly misrepresenting the meaning behind the song.
In the lawsuit, he alleged that Jonasi made “false statements” about the chant, which he said translates more accurately to: “All hail the king, we all bow in the presence of the king.”
Lebo M’s lawsuit claims that Jonasi’s comments are “not a simplified translation — it is a fabricated, trivializing distortion, meant as a sick joke for unlawful self-profit and destruction of the imaginative and artistic work of Lebo M.”
He also argued that Jonasi’s translation was “presented … as authoritative fact, not comedy,” and “mocked the chant’s cultural significance with exaggerated imitations.”
Jonasi claimed on social media that he received a private message from Lebo M. “But the moment he called me a self-hating negro, that’s when everything changed for me,” Jonasi said. “This person is literally not just attacking the joke, but my character.”
If you would like to donate to Learnmore Jonasi’s GoFundMe, you can do so here.
The post Learnmore Jonasi launches GoFundMe to help with $27 million ‘Lion King’ lawsuit appeared first on NewZimbabwe.com.
