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Songwriter sues Willie Colón’s publishing company over royalties from salsa hit ‘Talento de Televisión’
Songwriter Amílcar Boscán has sued ElMalo, Inc. (trading as Willie Colón Music Company), the publishing company of the late salsa musician Willie Colón, alleging he was never paid the royalties owed to him for co-writing the hit track "Talento de Televisión." Filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, the lawsuit also seeks to reclaim the song's copyrights under US law, highlighting a wider pattern of ageing musicians and songwriters using copyright termination provisions to reassert control over decades-old works from major rights holders.
Boscán says a 1994 songwriter agreement entitled him to half the royalties from "Talento de Televisión" and another song, "Caer en Gracia," plus twice-yearly accounting statements, none of which he alleges he received despite repeated written notices between 2024 and 2026. He is seeking at least $300,000 in damages and a declaration that his rights revert to him by January 2031 under Section 203 of the US Copyright Act, alongside claims of breach of contract and false copyright registration with BMI. The complaint notes the song has been streamed over 451 million times on Spotify, making it Colón's most popular track; Colón died in February 2026, and similar termination-rights disputes are also being pursued by Salt-N-Pepa and singer Ricardo Montaner.
In short
- Songwriter sues Willie Colón's publisher over unpaid royalties
- Seeks $300,000 and rights to reclaim song's copyright by 2031
- Part of a wider wave of music copyright termination lawsuits
Explained simply
Songwriters can own copyright in the music or words they create, while a publishing company may manage those rights and collect royalties when a song is played or streamed. A songwriter agreement can set out how that income is shared and require the publisher to provide regular accounts.
Amílcar Boscán is a Venezuelan songwriter who co-wrote “Talento de Televisión” with salsa musician Willie Colón, whose company handled the song’s publishing. Boscán says their 1994 agreement gave him half the royalties from that song and another track, “Caer en Gracia”.
US law also allows some songwriters to reclaim copyright they previously transferred, after a set period and subject to legal conditions. Such claims can affect who controls a song and receives income from it, particularly when older works continue to be widely streamed.
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