NEWS FLASH: Ed Sheeran has prevailed in the copyright infringement case that he had previously claimed might spell the end of his musical career. The jury concluded that the Grammy-winning songwriter did not copy Marvin Gaye’s 1973 soul classic “Let’s Get It On” after a two-week trial in Manhattan. ”.
The estate of the song’s co-writer, Ed Townsend, brought the lawsuit in 2017, claiming that the earlier song and Sheeran’s 2014 hit, “Thinking Out Loud,” shared “striking similarities.”. ”.
He is charged with ripping off the renowned RandB song “Let’s Get It On” by Marvin Gaye.
The trial’s jury has begun deliberating.
After three hours of deliberation, the jury reached its decision at 1 p.m. on Thursday, according to the New York Times, concluding that Sheeran and his co-writer Amy Wadge independently created the song and did not violate any copyright.
After the verdict was announced, the co-authors are said to have hugged. Suit over chord progression The plaintiff claimed that “Thinking Out Loud” and “Let’s Get It On” both used chord progressions that were similar. The chords were “virtually identical,” according to their expert witness Alexander Stewart. ”.
However, Sheeran and Wadge asserted in court testimony that they were merely using the chords to create a unique song and that the progression was a very typical one found in many songs. Wadge claimed during her testimony that it was “not possible” for her to have violated the rights to another song because she was simply playing some basic chords she was familiar with.
Sheeran criticized Stewart’s actions, saying, “I think what he’s doing here is criminal.”. “I’m puzzled as to why he’s permitted to be an authority. Additionally, Sheeran allegedly performed the chords to the beats of several other songs to show how typical the progression is.
Missed his grandmother’s funeral due to the lawsuit Sheeran experienced a great deal of personal stress. He was forced to miss his grandmother’s funeral in Ireland this week because of the court case, which also endangered his reputation and career. According to the Daily Mail, Sheeran’s father John delivered the eulogy for the 98-year-old on Wednesday and expressed his sadness that his son Edward couldn’t attend. Because he can’t attend, he is extremely upset. His appearance in an American court to defend his integrity must be thousands of miles away. ”.
“This week, for me at the moment, I got the documentary coming out, the album [Subtract] coming out on Friday, I start my tour on Saturday, my grandmother’s funeral is [Wednesday], [and] I’m still in this court case,” Sheeran said to Gayle King, per ET. It’s simply another stage of life when things are happening. Does not necessarily mean 2023 is a loss. The worst days of your life always come to an end at midnight. If found guilty, Sheeran would be “done” with music because, if the plaintiffs’ case had been successful, it might have sparked a wave of lawsuits against musicians who used similar chord progressions. Mr. Dot Sheeran said he would even consider quitting music if he lost his case while discussing his own case earlier this week.
According to Sheeran, “If that happens, I’m done, I’m stopping.”.
It really insults me, in my opinion.
In order to get where I am, I work incredibly hard. One of the most well-known recent cases also involved the music of the late Marvin Gaye: after a five-year legal battle over the hit song “Blurred Lines,” Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams agreed to pay $5 million to Gaye’s estate, which claimed that the songs had strong similarities to two of Gaye’s songs.
Sheeran has also been involved in legal battles of his own in the past; he triumphed in a UK copyright infringement case last year involving the song “Shape of You.”. Sheeran condemned “baseless” legal actions against musicians at the time. “I’m not an entity, I’m not a corporation, I’m a human being,” he declared. “I’m a husband, a father, and a son. I hope that this ruling means future frivolous claims like these can be avoided because lawsuits are not fun. This has to end, period. ”.
Having a similar chord progression does not constitute plagiarism, and this victory is a win for musicians everywhere. Denis Makarenko / Shutterstock.com Congratulations to Ed Sheeran and Amy Wadge on winning this legal battle. If you enjoy Ed Sheeran, please spread the word about this article.
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