This time I found the new copyright case involving music superstar Ed Sheeran really interesting.
I was interested in this article published on the Australian Broadcasting Commission website titled 'Jury to decide whether Ed Sheeran copied Marvin Gaye's Let's Get It On for his 2014 song Thinking Out Loud' published on 4 January, 2019 at abc.net.au.
The article states there are three key points surrounding the new case against Ed Sheeran... "Judge reportedly said the songs have similar percussion and basslines...Sheeran's defence apparently claims his "sombre" song is very different to Gaye's "sexual anthem"... The singer has previously been accused of copying elements of other artists' songs..."
The article also states the new case against Sheeran is based on that he has previously been accused of plagiarising from other music. Should people not be presumed innocent until proven guilty under the law?
'Jury to decide whether Ed Sheeran copied Marvin Gaye's Let's Get It On for his 2014 song Thinking Out Loud'...
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-01-04/ed-sheeran-margin-gaye-plagiarism-case-going-to-jury/10685922
A US judge has rejected English singer and songwriter Ed Sheeran's request to dismiss a lawsuit accusing him of plagiarising Marvin Gaye's 1973 classic Let's Get It On for his 2014 smash Thinking Out Loud.
In a decision made public on Thursday, US District Judge Louis Stanton said a jury should decide whether Sheeran, Sony/ATV Music Publishing and Atlantic Records should be liable to the estate and heirs of the late producer Ed Townsend, who co-wrote Let's Get It On with Gaye.
Sheeran reportedly denies ripping off sections of the Marvin Gaye song...
According to the BBC, Judge Stanton said the songs had similar percussion and basslines and listeners might consider the song's "aesthetic appeal" to be similar.
The judge also claimed there was disagreement over whether the rhythm and harmony of Let's Get It On was too common to merit copyright protection, the BBC said.
Sheeran's defence team said Thinking Out Loud differs from Gaye's classic tune because it has "sombre, melancholic tones, addressing long-lasting romantic love", the BBC said, while Let's Get It On is a "sexual anthem".
Sheeran's been accused of plagiarism before...
It's not the first time Sheeran has been accused of copying the work of other artists.
In January 2018, two Australian musicians filed a copyright infringement complaint against Sheeran, country music singers Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, among others, accusing them of plagiarising one of their songs.
Sean Carey, a former guitarist in the band Thirsty Merc, and keyboardist and songwriter Beau Golden said The Rest Of Our Life, a song by McGraw and Hill and co-written by Sheeran, is substantially similar to their track When I Found You.
Australian singer Jasmine Rae released When I Found You under her name in 2015, and it was the most played song on Australian country radio, according to the complaint filed in the US District Court in New York.
In 2017, according to the Guardian, Sheeran settled out of court over claims his song Photograph was a "note-for-note" copy of a song called Amazing by UK X Factor winner Matt Cardle.
Also in 2017, the BBC said, the team behind TLC's song No Scrubs were given writing credits on Sheeran's smash hit Shape Of You after fans and critics found similarities between elements of the two songs.
Previous payouts over Marvin Gaye songs...
It's also not the first time there have been accusations of modern-day musicians copying the music of Motown legend Marvin Gaye.
In 2015 a US jury ordered pop singers Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams to pay more than $US7 million ($9.97 million) in damages to the family of Marvin Gaye.
The jury ruled Thicke and Williams copied Gaye's 1977 hit Got To Give It Up in writing their 2013 song Blurred Lines.
At the time, Gaye's daughter Nona said: "I'm so filled with emotion it's hard to get the words out."
She called the verdict a "miracle" and said the family took legal action because "[Marvin] can't do it for himself".
I was interested in this article published on the Australian Broadcasting Commission website titled 'Jury to decide whether Ed Sheeran copied Marvin Gaye's Let's Get It On for his 2014 song Thinking Out Loud' published on 4 January, 2019 at abc.net.au.
The article states there are three key points surrounding the new case against Ed Sheeran... "Judge reportedly said the songs have similar percussion and basslines...Sheeran's defence apparently claims his "sombre" song is very different to Gaye's "sexual anthem"... The singer has previously been accused of copying elements of other artists' songs..."
The article provides a background to the new claim, Sheeran's defence team's response, the history of copyright claims made by other artists and musicians against Sheeran and Marvin Gaye. Interestingly I noticed when referencing the article that the journalist did not put their name on it.
The journalist provides a shared link to music videos from YouTube so the reader can compare versions and make up their own mind.
The journalist provides a shared link to music videos from YouTube so the reader can compare versions and make up their own mind.
The first song 'Thinking Out Loud' is an official Ed Sheeran music video which has had over 2 billion views. All the proceeds from the music video would go to Ed Sheeran.
The Marvin Gaye version of the song 'Lets Get It On' is a sound track placed on an image of Marvin Gaye. This upload is pirated and has had over 65 million views. According to Google it pays $1000 per million views on YouTube so this song alone would have made the account holder approximately $65 000 if monetised. So that is quite a substantial amount of money the Marvin Gaye estate may have missed out on.
For the Marvin Gaye estate which seems very interested in artists and musicians plagiarising music I am wondering why they haven't stepped in to stop people collecting off pirated versions of their songs on YouTube. This version of 'Lets Get It On' was loaded up in 2010.
The Marvin Gaye version of the song 'Lets Get It On' is a sound track placed on an image of Marvin Gaye. This upload is pirated and has had over 65 million views. According to Google it pays $1000 per million views on YouTube so this song alone would have made the account holder approximately $65 000 if monetised. So that is quite a substantial amount of money the Marvin Gaye estate may have missed out on.
For the Marvin Gaye estate which seems very interested in artists and musicians plagiarising music I am wondering why they haven't stepped in to stop people collecting off pirated versions of their songs on YouTube. This version of 'Lets Get It On' was loaded up in 2010.
Perhaps a journalist writing about plagiarism in music should not have shared pirated videos as it kind of undermines their knowledge on the subject.
The article also states the new case against Sheeran is based on that he has previously been accused of plagiarising from other music. Should people not be presumed innocent until proven guilty under the law?
The article provides a great link to other interesting cases involving plagiarism in the music industry.
I have copied the article for those people interested and provided a link to the original article. No copyright infringement intended.
'Jury to decide whether Ed Sheeran copied Marvin Gaye's Let's Get It On for his 2014 song Thinking Out Loud'...
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-01-04/ed-sheeran-margin-gaye-plagiarism-case-going-to-jury/10685922
A US judge has rejected English singer and songwriter Ed Sheeran's request to dismiss a lawsuit accusing him of plagiarising Marvin Gaye's 1973 classic Let's Get It On for his 2014 smash Thinking Out Loud.
In a decision made public on Thursday, US District Judge Louis Stanton said a jury should decide whether Sheeran, Sony/ATV Music Publishing and Atlantic Records should be liable to the estate and heirs of the late producer Ed Townsend, who co-wrote Let's Get It On with Gaye.
Sheeran reportedly denies ripping off sections of the Marvin Gaye song...
According to the BBC, Judge Stanton said the songs had similar percussion and basslines and listeners might consider the song's "aesthetic appeal" to be similar.
The judge also claimed there was disagreement over whether the rhythm and harmony of Let's Get It On was too common to merit copyright protection, the BBC said.
Sheeran's defence team said Thinking Out Loud differs from Gaye's classic tune because it has "sombre, melancholic tones, addressing long-lasting romantic love", the BBC said, while Let's Get It On is a "sexual anthem".
Sheeran's been accused of plagiarism before...
It's not the first time Sheeran has been accused of copying the work of other artists.
In January 2018, two Australian musicians filed a copyright infringement complaint against Sheeran, country music singers Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, among others, accusing them of plagiarising one of their songs.
Sean Carey, a former guitarist in the band Thirsty Merc, and keyboardist and songwriter Beau Golden said The Rest Of Our Life, a song by McGraw and Hill and co-written by Sheeran, is substantially similar to their track When I Found You.
Australian singer Jasmine Rae released When I Found You under her name in 2015, and it was the most played song on Australian country radio, according to the complaint filed in the US District Court in New York.
In 2017, according to the Guardian, Sheeran settled out of court over claims his song Photograph was a "note-for-note" copy of a song called Amazing by UK X Factor winner Matt Cardle.
Also in 2017, the BBC said, the team behind TLC's song No Scrubs were given writing credits on Sheeran's smash hit Shape Of You after fans and critics found similarities between elements of the two songs.
Previous payouts over Marvin Gaye songs...
It's also not the first time there have been accusations of modern-day musicians copying the music of Motown legend Marvin Gaye.
In 2015 a US jury ordered pop singers Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams to pay more than $US7 million ($9.97 million) in damages to the family of Marvin Gaye.
The jury ruled Thicke and Williams copied Gaye's 1977 hit Got To Give It Up in writing their 2013 song Blurred Lines.
At the time, Gaye's daughter Nona said: "I'm so filled with emotion it's hard to get the words out."
She called the verdict a "miracle" and said the family took legal action because "[Marvin] can't do it for himself".
