Bill Hochberg, Forbes; Why A Potential Supreme Court Copyright Decision Could Change The Music Business
"There’s billions at stake for music companies and investors who may get a big hit – and not the kind they like – if the U.S. Supreme Court decides music creators and their heirs can get back their copyrights worldwide."
Nicole McNew Chen, Library of Congress Blogs: Copyright Creativity at Work; Taking Copyright Out to the Ball Game: A Closer Look at Baseball’s Most Famous Tunes
"In 1908, lyricist Jack Norworth and composer Albert Von Tilzer wrote what would become one of the most recognized and most sung musical works in the United States: “Take Me Out to the Ball Game.” In a relatively short period, it was performed for the first time, registered with the Copyright Office, and published in a series of sheet music depicting vaudeville stars on the covers. The song was an instant hit, though it wouldn’t become the baseball theme we know today until much later. With Opening Day and the start of the 2026 Major League Baseball (MLB) season, we’re looking at the history of the song and copyright’s connection to America’s favorite pastime."
Maxine Bernstein, The Oregonian; Federal jury rejects hymn copyright infringement claim against British composer
"A jury in Portland on Friday found that a British composer didn’t purloin musical passages of an American composer’s Christian hymn in a case that brought both musicians into a downtown federal courtroom to play the pieces.
The composers took turns using an electric keyboard positioned in front of the jury box during a four-day trial before U.S. District Judge Karin J. Immergut.
The eight jurors got the case Thursday afternoon and spent less than a day deliberating before returning its verdict that Bernadette Farrell of London hadn’t copied notes from Vincent A. Ambrosetti’s “Emmanuel.”"
Maxine Bernstein | The Oregonian/OregonLive; Music copyright case in Portland focuses on 12 bars from two Catholic hymns
"Two composers are dueling in court in a copyright infringement case this week in Portland over 12 bars of 26 notes in two Catholic hymns...
American composer Vincent A. Ambrosetti wrote the music and lyrics for “Emmanuel,” in 1980 and claims London-based composer Bernadette Farrell stole from his song to write her “Christ, Be Our Light,” in 1993."
, Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment Law Blog; Music Copyright in the Gen AI Age: Where Are We Now?
"Imagine you are a musician who has dedicated years of your life creating an album or EP — tinkering with the production, revising lyrics, finding the perfect samples— and now, you have finally shared your art with the world and are thrilled with the project’s success. However, while scrolling on TikTok a few months later, you hear some familiar audio. Wait a minute, is that one of your songs? No… not quite, but why does it sound so similar? Turns out, the song was created using artificial intelligence (“AI”)."
Lars Brandle , Billboard; ‘AN IMPORTANT STEP’: EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ADOPTS REPORT ON COPYRIGHT AND GENERATIVE AI
"Two years after the European Parliament passed the Artificial Intelligence Act, MEPs this week finally adopted a report on copyright and generative AI.
On Tuesday, March 10, Parliament passed its resolution on “Copyright and generative artificial intelligence – opportunities and challenges” with an overwhelming majority of 460 votes to 71, and with 88 abstentions.
The report calls for the EU and its 27 member states to focus on the crucial issues of how AI and tech companies engage with copyright-protected music in the digital age, and explores a licensing system as a solution, paving the way for fair compensation for the use of creative works."
MATTHEW THOMAS, Men's Journal; 1970 No. 1 Hit Song Sparked the Decade’s Biggest Copyright Lawsuit
"On November 28, 1970, George Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord/Isn’t It a Pity” reached number 1 on the Billboard chart together. The songs would hold that top slot for 4 weeks and spend 14 weeks on the charts in total.
“My Sweet Lord” soon spawned an infamous “subconscious plagiarism” legal fight that resulted in a landmark ruling that still profoundly affects the music industry today."
Ben Beaumont-Thomas, The Guardian; ‘A nasty little song, really rather evil’: how Every Breath You Take tore Sting and the Police apart
"This week’s high court hearings between Sting and his former bandmates in the Police, Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers, are the latest chapter in the life of a song whose negative energy seems to have seeped out into real life.
Every Breath You Take is the subject of a lawsuit filed by Copeland and Summers against Sting, alleging that he owes them royalties linked to their contributions to the hugely popular song, particularly from streaming earnings, estimated at $2m (£1.5m) in total. Sting’s legal team have countered that previous agreements between him and his bandmates regarding their royalties from the song do not include streaming revenue – and argued in pre-trial documents that the pair may have been “substantially overpaid”. In the hearing’s opening day, it was revealed that since the lawsuit was filed, Sting has paid them $870,000 (£647,000) to redress what his lawyer called “certain admitted historic underpayments”. But there are still plenty of future potential earnings up for debate."
Bryan WestNashville Tennessean, USA TODAY; What Swift fan accounts should know about copyright after Barstool's 'Taylor Watch' canceled
""'Taylor Watch' is canceled," Keegs said on the 150th episode, "because having a music related podcast or something that can toe the line with lawsuits in general where it comes to music rights, whatever, is just not feasible with Barstool Sports at this time."
One underlying issue lies in copyrighted photos, videos and music being used on social media. Several posts potentially opened parent company Barstool Sports to lawsuits, and the podcasters had two options: to cancel "Taylor Watch" or be fired."
Alana Bonilla , HypeBot; How to Find Copyright Owners For Covers and Samples
"Want to use a someone else’s audio legally but don’t know who owns it? This expert guide shows you how to find copyright holders fast – and get the permissions you need without the legal headaches."
TechDirt via Above The Law; Trump Loses Copyright Suit Over ‘Electric Avenue’ 2020 Campaign Video In Summary Judgement
"During what was essentially a multi-year advertisement for just how absolutely petty, stupid, and disingenuous a political system could possibly be, the 2020 American presidential election also featured a video sent out by the Trump campaign on social media that resulted in a copyright infringement lawsuit. You can see below a news clip that features the video, which is an admittedly fairly funny poke at his then rival, Joe Biden, but which also uses a healthy chunk of the Eddy Grant song Electric Avenue within it.
The Trump campaign used the music without permission. That appears to have pissed off Eddy Grant, who filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against the Trump campaign as a result...
In this case, however, there is no defending this through venue licenses. The song wasn’t played in a venue at all. It was played in a campaign video tweeted out by the campaign. As a result, the Trump campaign’s defense was instead fair use. And, as I detailed in my original post above, the fair use defense in this case is fairly laughable.
The judge overseeing the case apparently agrees, having found for Eddy Grant on summary judgement."
Associated Press via Politico; Trump campaign ordered to stop using classic R&B song; Associated Press via Politico
"A federal judge in Atlanta ruled Tuesday that Donald Trump and his campaign must stop using the song “Hold On, I’m Comin’” while the family of one of the song’s co-writers pursues a lawsuit against the former president over its use.
The estate of Isaac Hayes Jr. filed a lawsuit last month alleging that Trump, his campaign and several of his allies had infringed its copyright and should pay damages. After a hearing on the estate’s request for an emergency preliminary injunction, U.S. District Judge Thomas Thrash ruled that Trump must stop using the song, but he denied a request to force the campaign to take down any existing videos that include the song."
Kevin Dolan, The Hollywood Reporter; Trump and Associates Set to Face Isaac Hayes’ Estate in Court Over Use of Songwriter’s Music
"Team Trump and multiple associations and organizations affiliated with the former president will finally have to appear before a judge to explain its unauthorized use of popular music at the GOP candidate’s rallies and events, which has gone on for years but is being threatened by the estate of recording legend Isaac Hayes, which was granted an emergency injunction in its lawsuit against the former president, according to a Friday social media post from the songwriter’s son.
Team Trump and multiple associations and organizations affiliated with the former president will finally have to appear before a judge to explain its unauthorized use of popular music at the GOP candidate’s rallies and events, which has gone on for years but is being threatened by the estate of recording legend Isaac Hayes, which was granted an emergency injunction in its lawsuit against the former president, according to a Friday social media post from the songwriter’s son."
Jonathan Limehouse, USA TODAY; The beats go on: Trump keeps dancing as artists get outraged over his use of their songs
"Here are some of the songs that have created issues for Trump on the campaign trail, and how music copyright laws impact these claims."
Lance Yarlott, a passionate musician, shared his thoughts on the matter...
His band prepared for their last rehearsal before recording in a studio on Middle Tennessee State University’s campus. Many songs come to life in a recording studio, however, they are no longer the only option.
There's been a surge of people using AI song generators from start-up companies like Suno and Udio...
MTSU copyright law professor and entertainment attorney Denise Shackelford explained the legal issues...
This year, Tennessee became the first state to protect musicians and other artists against AI, thanks to the Ensuring Likeness Voice and Image Security Act, or ELVIS Act for short."
Blake Brittain, Reuters; Music labels' AI lawsuits create copyright puzzle for courts
"Suno and Udio pointed to past public statements defending their technology when asked for comment for this story. They filed their initial responses in court on Thursday, denying any copyright violations and arguing that the lawsuits were attempts to stifle smaller competitors. They compared the labels' protests to past industry concerns about synthesizers, drum machines and other innovations replacing human musicians...
The labels' claims echo allegations by novelists, news outlets, music publishers and others in high-profile copyright lawsuits over chatbots like OpenAI's ChatGPT and Anthropic's Claude that use generative AI to create text. Those lawsuits are still pending and in their early stages.
Both sets of cases pose novel questions for the courts, including whether the law should make exceptions for AI's use of copyrighted material to create something new...
"Music copyright has always been a messy universe," said Julie Albert, an intellectual property partner at law firm Baker Botts in New York who is tracking the new cases. And even without that complication, Albert said fast-evolving AI technology is creating new uncertainty at every level of copyright law.
WHOSE FAIR USE?
The intricacies of music may matter less in the end if, as many expect, the AI cases boil down to a "fair use" defense against infringement claims - another area of U.S. copyright law filled with open questions."
Bruce Haring, Deadline; AI Startup Suno Claims “Fair Use” Copyright Doctrine Allows Training On Major Recordings
"Suno CEO and co-founder Mikey Shulman amplified that stance in a blog post today. “We train our models on medium- and high-quality music we can find on the open internet… Much of the open internet indeed contains copyrighted materials, and some of it is owned by major record labels.”
Schulman said such use is viewed by Suno as “early but promising progress. Major record labels see this vision as a threat to their business.” He added, “learning is not infringing. It never has been, and it is not now.”
Shulman also argued that training its AI model from data on the “open internet” is no different than a “kid writing their own rock songs after listening to the genre.”
The RIAA responded “It’s a major concession of facts they spent months trying to hide and acknowledged only when forced by a lawsuit. Their industrial scale infringement does not qualify as ‘fair use’. There’s nothing fair about stealing an artist’s life’s work, extracting its core value, and repackaging it to compete directly with the originals…Their vision of the ‘future of music’ is apparently one in which fans will no longer enjoy music by their favorite artists because those artists can no longer earn a living.”"
Clay Walker, The Daily Beast; Philip Glass Says Crimean Theater Is Using His Music Without Permission
"Legendary American composer Philip Glass had some harsh words after learning that a theater in Russian-annexed Crimea plans to use his music and name as part of a new show. In a letter posted to X, Glass explained that he had learned a new ballet called Wuthering Heights is set to open at the Sevastopol Opera and Ballet Theater—using works he had penned without his consent. “No permission for the use of my music in the ballet or the use of my name in the advertising and promotion of the ballet was ever requested of me or given by me. The use of my music and the use of my name without my consent is in violation of the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic works to which the Russian Federation is a signatory. It is an act of piracy,” Glass wrote."
Cody Mello-Klein, Northeastern Global News; Can Donald Trump or Joe Biden play whatever music they want at a rally or convention? Legal expert says it’s more complicated
"It turns out that what music gets played at a political rally or campaign event involves more consideration –– and legal know-how –– than you might think. It’s an area where the law, performing arts and politics intersect in sometimes uncomfortable ways, particularly for a politician like Trump, who has an entire Wikipedia page dedicated to listing musicians who oppose his use of their music.
So, what rights do politicians have when it comes to playing music during rallies, conventions or campaign events? The answer, says Alexandra Roberts, a professor of law and media at Northeastern University, is a little complicated."
Natalie Sherman , BBC News; AI: World's biggest music labels sue over copyright
"The world's biggest record labels are suing two artificial intelligence (AI) start-ups over alleged copyright violation in a potentially landmark case.
Firms including Sony Music, Universal Music Group and Warner Records say Suno and Udio have committed copyright infringement on an "almost unimaginable scale".
They claim the pair's software steals music to "spit out" similar work and ask for compensation of $150,000 per work."
