Jury selection to begin in copyright infringement lawsuit over Ed Sheeran's "Thinking Out Loud"
Jury selection to begin in copyright infringement lawsuit over Ed Sheeran's "Thinking Out Loud"
NEW YORK - The copyright infringement trial of music superstar Ed Sherran gets underway Monday in Manhattan.
He is being sued for alleged similarities between his song, "Thinking Out Loud," and the classic Marvin Gaye tune, "Let's Get It On."
Sheeran and the estate of Ed Townsend, who wrote "Let's Get It On," are battling the matter out in court.
He is being sued for alleged similarities between his song, "Thinking Out Loud," and the classic Marvin Gaye tune, "Let's Get It On."
Sheeran and the estate of Ed Townsend, who wrote "Let's Get It On," are battling the matter out in court.
"This must stop," Townsend's daughter, Kathryn Griffin-Townsend, said last month. "We have enough chaos going on in the world today, besides having to stand here and worry about other people stealing other people's belongings."
Civil right attorney Ben Crump, who represents the Townsend family, says intellectual property being stolen from Black artists has been going on for decades in the music industry.
"For far too long, Black artists have created, inspired and spread music all around the world. And Ed Townsend's family believes artists', like Mr. Sheeran's, infringement of Black artists is merely another example of artists exploiting the genius and the work of Black singers and songwriters," said Crump.
This isn't the first time the British pop star has found himself in this kind of legal battle.
In March 2022, Sheeran won another copyright suit over the song, "Shape of You."
"Coincidence is bound to happen. If 60,000 songs are being released every day on Spotify, that's 22 million songs a year. There are only 12 notes that are available," he responded on social media last year.
The plaintiff's in that case claim emails were sent within Sheeran's team acknowledging the songs sounded like one another. They ask to be compensated based on the percentage of the song the court decides was copied, even if the chord progression was taking coincidentally.
If the jury finds Sheeran liable for copyright infringement, the court will hold another trial to determine how much he and his labels should pay. The first trial is expected to last up to a week.
Civil right attorney Ben Crump, who represents the Townsend family, says intellectual property being stolen from Black artists has been going on for decades in the music industry.
"For far too long, Black artists have created, inspired and spread music all around the world. And Ed Townsend's family believes artists', like Mr. Sheeran's, infringement of Black artists is merely another example of artists exploiting the genius and the work of Black singers and songwriters," said Crump.
This isn't the first time the British pop star has found himself in this kind of legal battle.
In March 2022, Sheeran won another copyright suit over the song, "Shape of You."
"Coincidence is bound to happen. If 60,000 songs are being released every day on Spotify, that's 22 million songs a year. There are only 12 notes that are available," he responded on social media last year.
The plaintiff's in that case claim emails were sent within Sheeran's team acknowledging the songs sounded like one another. They ask to be compensated based on the percentage of the song the court decides was copied, even if the chord progression was taking coincidentally.
If the jury finds Sheeran liable for copyright infringement, the court will hold another trial to determine how much he and his labels should pay. The first trial is expected to last up to a week.
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