A member of Run DMC has filed a $50m (£40m) trademark lawsuit against Wal-Mart, Amazon and other US retailers.

Darryl 'DMC' McDaniels has accused the corporate giants of "advertising, selling, manufacturing, promoting and distributing multiple products" in the group's trademarked name without his consent.

The 52-year-old rapper is the founder of the 1980s hip-hop group and the owner of the band's brand name.

The lawsuit was filed in the Southern District of New York by McDaniels, regarding products including glasses, hats, t-shirts, patches, wallets and other items of the DMC brand.

The lawsuit alleges the retailers have "improperly profited, diluted and harmed Run DMC".


The rapper says the brand has generated more than $100m (£80m) in revenue since its inception in 1981.

The group is considered a hip-hop pioneer, with hits including King of Rock, It's Tricky and the Aerosmith collaboration Walk This Way.

Run DMC was founded in New York by McDaniels, Joseph 'Run' Simmons and Jason 'Jam Master Jay' Mizell.

The group stopped recording after Master Jay was shot dead in his Queens recording studio in 2002.

The Run DMC logo became a symbol of hip-hop culture and its success outlived the group.

Amazon and Wal-Mart, which also owns similarly accused Jet, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.