Peony Hirwani, Independent; Ed Sheeran co-writer gets tattoo of jury’s copyright verdict
"Ed Sheeran’s longtime collaborator Amy Wadge has had his “Thinking Out Loud” copyright victory verdict tattooed on her arm...
Now, Sheeran’s co-writer Wagde has had the words “independently created” inked in a typewriter-style typeface on her left arm."
Ben Sisario, The New York Times ; 6 Takeaways From Ed Sheeran’s ‘Let’s Get It On’ Copyright Case
"1. Sheeran’s victory maintains music copyright’s status quo.
An opinion piece in The Washington Post called the lawsuit “a threat to Western civilization.” Sheeran’s lawyers were less hyperbolic but still argued that a loss would have a devastating impact on songwriters by privatizing parts of the public domain.
“Creativity would be stifled for fear of being sued,” Ilene S. Farkas said in her closing statement.
Sheeran’s win means that music’s wider legal landscape remains largely undisturbed. After the shock of the “Blurred Lines” verdict in 2015, in which Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams were ordered to pay more than $5 million to Gaye’s family — a case that many experts felt was wrongly decided — Led Zeppelin prevailed in a suit involving “Stairway to Heaven,” sending the pendulum back to a more neutral position."
Elizabeth Nelson, The Washington Post; The Ed Sheeran lawsuit is a threat to Western civilization. Really.
"Imagine a painter in their studio, preparing for an exhibition. The painter is working on a landscape. The sky is midnight blue. The valley is Kelly green. Mountains loom in the back, a spectacular hue reflecting off a brilliant sunset. The painter reaches for vermillion and then pauses. Wait a second, they think: Does someone own the copyright to this shade of red? Am I going to get sued for this?
That would be crazy, right? Regrettably and amazingly, in the music industry the aesthetic equivalent of this thought process is no longer as insane as it sounds."
, The New York Times; Ed Sheeran Wins Copyright Case Over Marvin Gaye’s ‘Let’s Get It On’
"A federal jury found on Thursday that the pop singer Ed Sheeran did not copy Marvin Gaye’s classic “Let’s Get It On” for his 2014 hit “Thinking Out Loud,” in the music industry’s highest-profile copyright case in years...
Besides Mr. Sheeran, the defendants included his label, Atlantic Records, and his publisher, Sony Music Publishing.
For the wider music industry, Mr. Sheeran’s victory preserves a status quo about copyright. After the disruption of the “Blurred Lines” case, many commentators viewed Led Zeppelin’s win as steering copyright cases back into more familiar territory. Katy Perry and her collaborators on the song “Dark Horse” were immediate beneficiaries of that ruling.
Last year, after successfully defending himself in Britain in an infringement case involving his hit “Shape of You,” Mr. Sheeran released a video on social media. “There’s only so many notes and very few chords used in pop music,” he said. “Coincidence is bound to happen if 60,000 are being released every day on Spotify.”"
"After all, the whole history of music (and the arts more broadly) is the history of taking what came before and reworking it. I don’t think it’s even possible to create something entirely original. Even the seemingly most original artists were often “original” in part because they were creative and eclectic thieves, taking from a diverse range of influences."
LARRY NEUMEISTER, AP News; Ed Sheeran: Other artists are cheering on copyright fight
"Sheeran said he’s heard from other singers since the trial began last week because they share his worries about litigation resulting from their songwriting. He didn’t identify any of them, but said they’re cheering him on — grateful that he’s standing up against what all songwriters view as a threat to their work.
“When you write songs, somebody comes after you,” Sheeran said."
, The New York Times; Ed Sheeran Trial: Did He Copy Marvin Gaye? Here’s What to Know.
"A closely watched music copyright trial is set to begin Monday in federal court in Manhattan, where a jury will decide a lawsuit accusing Ed Sheeran of copying his Grammy-winning ballad “Thinking Out Loud” from Marvin Gaye’s soul classic “Let’s Get It On.”...
The music industry is keenly interested in the outcome. Over the last decade, the business has been rocked by a series of infringement suits that have involved questions of just how much or how little of the work of pop songwriters can be protected by copyright, and how vulnerable they are to legal challenges."
PA Media, The Guardian; Ed Sheeran and co-writers awarded £900,000 in costs over copyright case
"Ed Sheeran and his co-songwriters have been awarded more than £900,000 in legal costs after winning their high court copyright trial over the hit Shape of You earlier this year."
Elizabeth Aubrey, NME; Ed Sheeran now films “every single writing session” to prevent future copyright cases
"Ed Sheeran has said that he now films “every single writing session” to prevent future copyright cases into his songs."
"In June, songwriters Martin Harrington and Thomas Leonard filed a $20 million lawsuit against Sheeran, claiming that the British pop star copied their song “Amazing” almost note-for-note in his 2014 hit “Photograph.” On Tuesday, Sheeran was again sued for copyright infringement, this time for his single “Thinking Out Loud.” Based on their peak positions on the Billboard Top 100, these are two of Sheeran’s three biggest hits. The suit comes from the heirs of Ed Townsend, who wrote the music and co-wrote the lyrics to Marvin Gaye’s famous romantic anthem, “Let’s Get it On.” It claims that Sheeran copied the major aspects of the melody, harmony and composition of “Let’s Get it On” for his hit “Thinking Out Loud.”"
"The English musician, who happens to be BFFs with Taylor Swift, is reportedly being sued for $20 million dollars over his song “Photograph,” according to Billboard. Songwriters Martin Harrington and Thomas Leonard and their publishing company claim the song borrows heavily from their track, “Amazing,” which was released as a single by 2010 “X Factor” winner Matt Cardle. Harrington and Leonard have written hits for some of the industry’s biggest stars, including Kylie Minogue. To help with their case, the plaintiffs are working with attorney Richard Busch, who was involved in the copyright lawsuit between Marvin Gaye’s family and Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams over the song “Blurred Lines.” If you recall, Thicke and Williams lost the case and contested a $7.4 million jury verdict that found they plagiarized the Motown great’s “Got to Give It Up.” The lawsuit against Sheeran says “Photograph” is too similar to the original composition of “Amazing” by Harrington and Leonard and the version recorded by Cardle. The plaintiffs claim the two songs share 39 identical notes."
