Kanye West hits back at Dame Shirely Bassey over `Diamonds Are Forever` sampling dispute

Kanye West has hit back in the row over his sampling of Dame Shirley Bassey's "Diamonds Are Forever" James Bond theme, insisting he had never heard of the singer.

Bassey is considering legal action, because West never sought her permission before using the sample on his single "Diamonds From Sierra Leone".

Bassey said back in September 2005, "I didn't know anything about the song before its release. He didn't ask my permission to have me singing on the his song. I didn't even know it existed until I heard him performing at the Live 8 concert. I didn't even hear from his record company, which wasn't very nice. (Legally) it's something I want to look into, because he was very cheeky, so one way or another he is going to have to pay me a lot of money."

But the rapper tells British newspaper the Daily Star, "I have never heard of her, I thought she was an unknown singer."

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