Ed Sheeran is not retiring: he won his plagiarism case

Ed Sheeran accused of plagiarism
He said he'd be
He writes 'eight or nine songs per day'
The case also included a live performance
The jury took his side
Let's Get it On (1973) - versus - Thinking Out Loud (2015)
Sued for 'stealing' parts of a Marvin Gaye song
They ask for more than 100 million dollars
Is 'Thinking Out Loud' plagiarism?
Has he copied Marvin Gaye?
Copyright: two or more fragments
Manhattan jury decided
It wasn't the first time
'Let's Get It On' (again)
'Stolen:' melodic, harmonic, rhythmic, and instrumental elements
Citizens' jury worked out well for Ed
It's not the first song that got him in trouble
'Shape of You'
Case won, invoice to the plaintiff
He won, but he's frustrated
Ed Sheeran accused of plagiarism

Ed Sheeran has gone through a second trial for alleged plagiarism in his music. In 2022, he was sued over his track 'Shape of You.' He won that case, but it wasn't fun. In April-May 2023, the dispute was about his single 'Thinking Out Loud.' It made Sheeran very frustrated.

He said he'd be "done" if losing this case

In the Manhattan Court where he successfully defended himself against claims that he stole from the famous Marvin Gaye song 'What's Going On,' Sheeran indicated that he'd had it. If the court were to find him guilty of making a song that sounded too much like Gaye's, he declared, "I'm done. I'm stopping."

He writes 'eight or nine songs per day'

Sheeran found the accusations "really insulting." He told the court that he developed greatly as a songwriter, going from "writing one to two songs a day as a teenager to now writing eight to nine songs daily," People reported. But that didn't mean he was making shortcuts and copying tunes.

The case also included a live performance

Ed Sheeran's court case, which started in the last week of April 2023, made headlines several times. The singer even played parts of his song for the court. As the Huffington Post UK said: "Ed whipping out his guitar and treating those present to a musical interlude and, at one point, the judge warning the jurors against dancing in court," made for remarkable stories.

The jury took his side

After comparing the songs and listening to experts, plaintiffs, and the defendant, the jury sided with Ed Sheeran. He was cleared of the charge of plagiarism.

Let's Get it On (1973) - versus - Thinking Out Loud (2015)

You can also decide for yourself. If you have a music streaming service, listen to the following two songs in a row: Marvin Gaye's 'Let's Get it On' from 1973 and Ed Sheeran's 'Thinking Out Loud' from 2015. Do they sound alike to you?

Sued for 'stealing' parts of a Marvin Gaye song

According to the copyright owners of Marvin Gaye's song, the songs have a lot in common, and they sued the British singer for plagiarism, demanding millions of dollars.

 

They ask for more than 100 million dollars

With a fortune estimated at 200 million dollars, according to the website Celebrity Net Worth, Ed Sheeran faced a lawsuit for approximately 100 million dollars.

In the picture, Ed Sheeran and his partner Cherry Seaborn. They have two children together.

Is 'Thinking Out Loud' plagiarism?

The federal judge in Manhattan, Louis Stanton, accommodated legal action against Ed Sheeran for alleged plagiarism of one of his best-known songs: 'Thinking Out Loud'. Stanton believed that a jury would be the one to decide.

Has he copied Marvin Gaye?

The song from which the complainants consider Ed Sheeran's work a partial rip-off is Marvin Gaye's classic, 'Let's Get It On,' released in 1973. They believe he has taken elements from the original song without reimbursing the people owning the rights to the song.

Copyright: two or more fragments

Billboard followed the lawsuit about the alleged breach of copyright closely. It claims that there may be at least a couple of elements in Ed Sheeran's song that reportedly came from Marvin Gaye's. Yet, the claim for millions of dollars in copyright was found unjust by the jury.

Manhattan jury decided

Billboard cited the judge in saying: "There is no bright-line rule that the combination of two unprotectable [sic] elements is insufficiently numerous to constitute an original work." The litigators had to prove that the use of parts resembling someone else's song, even if they are very small, was something to be paid for.

It wasn't the first time

Fans of Ed Sheeran experienced deja-vu when looking at this case, because in 2016, the family of Ed Townsend, the co-author of the classic song with Marvin Gaye, had already sued the British singer for the same thing. Their lawsuit was dismissed the following year.

'Let's Get It On' (again)

In 2018, however, the Townsend family sold a third of their shares for the rights to 'Let's Get It On' to the company Structured Asset Sales, and they decided to give it another shot and sue Ed Sheeran as new complainants.

'Stolen:' melodic, harmonic, rhythmic, and instrumental elements

David Pullman, president of Structured Asset Sales, claims that 'Thinking Out Loud' has taken melodic, harmonic, rhythmic, instrumental, and musical dynamic elements from the legendary song ('Let's Get it On') by Marvin Gaye. He made the statement to Billboard.

Citizens' jury worked out well for Ed

The businessman was optimistic about the fact that it would be a jury trial and thought he'd have "more success in this case" than the results of the Townends' litigation in 2016. But Pullman was wrong.

"The largest copyright infringement in history"

Pullman claimed it was "the largest copyright infringement in history." He made no secret of his delight at the multi-million dollar amount he might gain from the process.

It's not the first song that got him in trouble

Despite being in his early 30s, Ed Sheeran has already had to face another trial for plagiarism in April 2022.

'Shape of You'

On that occasion, it was the High Court of London that sided with him, considering that his great hit, 'Shape of You', had not plagiarized 'Oh Why', by Sami Chokri, released in 2015.

Case won, invoice to the plaintiff

As a result, it was the plaintiff who had to pay the million dollars that the trial cost.

He won, but he's frustrated

In the latest court case, the amounts of money disputed were much greater than just a million. Even though the jury took Sheeran's side, it was clear from his remarks to the court that he was fed up with the suits.

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