Comic Escapes $27 Million Lawsuit Over ‘Lion King’ Chant Joke ⁠18%

By Nancy Dillon⁠11%

7/11/2026, 1:48:11 AM

BS Summary: This article contains 26 faulty reasoning types, including Appeal to Emotion, Attempt to Sell a Product or Service, and Self-Serving Bias, with Negativity Bias as the most egregious example at 17.6% saturation with 119 hits. Analysis detected 938 faulty-reasoning hits from 677 analyzed words, generating a BS Score of 33% and a BS Rank of ⁠18% (18,102 of 21,886 articles). This article is better (less manipulative) than 82.70% of the article peer group.

Learnmore Jonasi performs on Aug. 14, 2025 in Pasadena, California. 
Michael S. 
Schwartz/Getty Images for ABA 
A federal judge in Los Angeles has dismissed a $27 million defamation lawsuit brought against the comedian Learnmore Jonasi by Lebohang Morake, the South African singer and composer professionally known as Lebo M. 
Morake’s Zulu chant opens “Circle of Life” in Disney’s The Lion King . 
The ruling, issued Friday, threw out the suit that Morake filed in March . 
Bryan Sullivan, a lawyer for Jonasi, called the decision a vindication of his client’s right to free speech. 
“We have always believed this was a frivolous lawsuit in violation of our client’s First Amendment rights,” Sullivan tells Rolling Stone . 
He says the dismissal came after his side filed a motion for sanctions against Morake. 
Jonasi will now seek attorneys’ fees under California’s anti-SLAPP statute, which is designed to deter lawsuits aimed at silencing public speech, he says. 
Morake sued after Jonasi appeared on the One54 Africa podcast and offered a decidedly less majestic translation of the chant, "Nants'ingonyama bagithi Baba." 
He said the line translates to, "Look, there's a lion. 
Oh, my God." 
The podcast hosts looked visibly stunned. 
A clip of the funny exchange later made the rounds on social media. 
For his part, Morake says the line actually translates to, "All hail the king, we all bow in the presence of the king." 
His lawsuit accused Jonasi of promoting a false translation with reckless disregard for the truth and for Morake's reputation. 
A lawyer for Morake did not immediately respond to Rolling Stone ‘s request for comment. 
In her order, U.S. 
District Judge Josephine Staton said the parties had "fully discussed the matter" and agreed to dismiss the case voluntarily. 
The dismissal was effective immediately, she wrote, and would not affect Jonasi's right to ask the court to order Morake to cover his legal expenses. 
Jonasi previously shared a video on TikTok showing himself getting served with the lawsuit while performing onstage at The Laugh Factory. 
The comedian also started a GoFundMe fundraiser to gather a legal war chest to fight the complaint. 
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"What started as a bit of humor has escalated into a devastating legal battle," Jonasi wrote on the fundraising page. 
"I am a passionate creator who never intended harm, but I now face overwhelming legal fees just to defend my right to speak and tell jokes." 
In the 19-page complaint, obtained by Rolling Stone , Morake argued that Jonasi had presented the translation as fact during a conversational podcast rather than as part of a stand-up routine. 
"Defendant presented it as factual knowledge with misguided authenticity to increase exposure and mockery of Lebo M's creative masterpiece," the lawsuit said. 
Morake claimed the remarks created a false narrative around his work and amounted to Jonasi "spitting on" it. 
He also expressed concern that the controversy could jeopardize his longstanding relationship with Disney, including his recent work on Mufasa: The Lion King . 
"This is not free speech, because the statements by defendant are false, vicious, and intended to cause significant harm to the legacy of Lebo M," the complaint said. 
Jonasi also turned the dispute into merchandise, selling T-shirts bearing the words, "Look, it's a Lawsuit. 
Oh, my God." 
The shirts featured a cartoon of the comedian holding up legal papers in a pose recalling Mufasa presenting Simba. 
"Get your T-shirt now," Jonasi wrote on Instagram. 
"You can really help me pay these legal fees." 
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Article reasoning-pattern comparisonThis article: 6.6%Nancy Dillon: 4.5%Rolling Stone: 2.9%Confirmation Bias6.6%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 0.7%Anchoring Bias0.0%This article: 0.9%Nancy Dillon: 2.1%Rolling Stone: 3.2%Availability Heuristic0.9%This article: 0.9%Nancy Dillon: 1.2%Rolling Stone: 0.9%Representativeness Heuristic0.9%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 0.8%Hindsight Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 1.6%Rolling Stone: 1.5%Overconfidence Bias0.0%This article: 4.9%Nancy Dillon: 5.8%Rolling Stone: 5.6%Framing Effect4.9%This article: 4.1%Nancy Dillon: 0.2%Rolling Stone: 0.6%Loss Aversion4.1%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.5%Rolling Stone: 0.8%Status Quo Bias0.0%This article: 2.5%Nancy Dillon: 0.2%Rolling Stone: 0.1%Sunk Cost Effect2.5%This article: 3.8%Nancy Dillon: 0.8%Rolling Stone: 2.0%Optimism Bias3.8%This article: 6.5%Nancy Dillon: 1.0%Rolling Stone: 1.1%Pessimism Bias6.5%This article: 17.6%Nancy Dillon: 6.0%Rolling Stone: 7.5%Negativity Bias17.6%This article: 9.6%Nancy Dillon: 5.4%Rolling Stone: 2.2%Self-Serving Bias9.6%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 1.5%Rolling Stone: 1.1%Fundamental Attribution Error0.0%This article: 4.6%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 0.1%Actor-Observer Bias4.6%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 1.3%In-Group Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 0.2%Out-Group Homogeneity Bias0.0%This article: 2.8%Nancy Dillon: 0.6%Rolling Stone: 4.8%Halo Effect2.8%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 0.3%Horn Effect0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 0.0%Dunning-Kruger Effect0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.5%Rolling Stone: 1.3%Recency Bias0.0%This article: 1.9%Nancy Dillon: 1.3%Rolling Stone: 0.5%Primacy Effect1.9%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 0.0%Blind-Spot Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.2%Rolling Stone: 1.1%Ad Hominem0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.2%Rolling Stone: 0.4%Straw Man0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 2.8%Rolling Stone: 3.4%Appeal to Authority0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.7%Rolling Stone: 1.5%False Dilemma0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.2%Rolling Stone: 0.7%Slippery Slope0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 0.3%Circular Reasoning0.0%This article: 0.9%Nancy Dillon: 1.0%Rolling Stone: 5.5%Hasty Generalization0.9%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 0.4%Red Herring0.0%This article: 4.3%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 0.7%Bandwagon4.3%This article: 16.8%Nancy Dillon: 6.3%Rolling Stone: 5.8%Appeal to Emotion16.8%This article: 4.1%Nancy Dillon: 0.6%Rolling Stone: 0.7%Begging the Question4.1%This article: 5.8%Nancy Dillon: 1.4%Rolling Stone: 2.8%Post Hoc (False Cause)5.8%This article: 3.8%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 0.1%Tu Quoque3.8%This article: 6.6%Nancy Dillon: 0.8%Rolling Stone: 0.3%Burden of Proof6.6%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.4%Rolling Stone: 0.2%Appeal to Nature0.0%This article: 2.4%Nancy Dillon: 0.3%Rolling Stone: 0.2%Composition/Division2.4%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 1.8%Rolling Stone: 2.4%Anecdotal0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 0.1%No True Scotsman0.0%This article: 3.4%Nancy Dillon: 2.5%Rolling Stone: 1.8%Ambiguity (Equivocation)3.4%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 0.0%Gambler’s Fallacy0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 0.1%Middle Ground0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 0.1%Personal Incredulity0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.8%Rolling Stone: 0.1%Special Pleading0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.3%Rolling Stone: 0.2%Genetic Fallacy0.0%This article: 7.4%Nancy Dillon: 1.0%Rolling Stone: 1.5%Unattributed Quote7.4%This article: 1.5%Nancy Dillon: 1.9%Rolling Stone: 1.3%Quote-first Misdirection1.5%This article: 3.2%Nancy Dillon: 2.0%Rolling Stone: 8.6%Biased Writer Voice3.2%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.2%Rolling Stone: 1.3%Indoctrination0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 1.6%Politically Left Leaning Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Nancy Dillon: 0.0%Rolling Stone: 0.2%Politically Right Leaning Bias0.0%This article: 11.5%Nancy Dillon: 1.1%Rolling Stone: 3.6%Attempt to Sell a Product or S…11.5%

677 words analyzed.

Speakers

4speakers37%attributed speech427writer words
Voice mapSelect a segment to jump to its words
Writer's voice • 10 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 10 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 2 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 4 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 33 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 13 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 14 words • 0.0% coverageBryan Sullivan • 18 words • 0.0% coverageBryan Sullivan • 22 words • 100.0% coverageBryan Sullivan • 15 words • 0.0% coverageBryan Sullivan • 23 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 23 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 10 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 3 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 6 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 13 words • 0.0% coverageLebohang Morake • 23 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 19 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 15 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 4 words • 0.0% coverageJosephine Staton • 19 words • 0.0% coverageJosephine Staton • 25 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 21 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 17 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 10 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 8 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 7 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 7 words • 0.0% coverageLearnmore Jonasi • 20 words • 0.0% coverageLearnmore Jonasi • 26 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 31 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 22 words • 100.0% coverageLebohang Morake • 18 words • 0.0% coverageLebohang Morake • 24 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 28 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 16 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 3 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 19 words • 100.0% coverageLearnmore Jonasi • 8 words • 100.0% coverageLearnmore Jonasi • 9 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 6 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 7 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 13 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 8 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 1 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 13 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 11 words • 0.0% coverage
Selected voice

Learnmore Jonasi

100%flagged-word coverage
63 attributed words25% of attributed speech66% writer coverage
0%35.0%70.0%Attempt to Sell a Product +60.1 ptsWriter: 8.2%Learnmore Jonasi: 68.3%68.3%Unattributed Quote-11.7 ptsWriter: 11.7%Learnmore Jonasi: 0.0%0.0%Quote-first Misdirection-2.3 ptsWriter: 2.3%Learnmore Jonasi: 0.0%0.0%

Attribution is sentence-level. Pattern percentages are calculated only from words assigned to that voice.

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Analysis

Hover over highlighted words in the article to view the associated bias or fallacy analysis.