A US jury has ruled that Ed Sheeran did not plagiarize Marvin Gaye’s Let’s Get It On when he composed his hit song, Thinking Out Loud, in 2014.
The English musician expressed his relief with the decision, but also his frustration that baseless claims like this can even make it to court.
The lawsuit was filed by the heirs of Gaye’s co-writer, Ed Townsend, who alleged that harmonic progressions and rhythmic elements of Sheeran’s song were lifted without permission from the classic made famous by Gaye. The heirs sought a share of the profits from Sheeran’s song, but the jury ruled that he “independently” created his song.
After the verdict, Sheeran said, “If the jury had decided this matter the other way, we might as well say goodbye to the creative freedom of songwriters. It is devastating and also insulting to be accused of stealing other people’s songs when we put so much into our livelihoods.” Sheeran played several songs from the witness stand as he gave evidence in the civil trial. He testified that he writes most of his songs in a day, and he co-wrote Thinking Out Loud with singer-songwriter Amy Wadge, a regular collaborator.
During the trial, the jurors had to decide whether Sheeran’s song and Gaye’s classic were substantially similar and if their common elements were protected by copyright law. The family of Ed Townsend had pointed out that the group Boyz II Men has performed mash-ups of the two songs, and that Sheeran has blended the songs together on stage as well.
Sheeran’s team disputed the allegations, pointing out that there are dozens, if not hundreds, of songs that predate and postdate Gaye’s song, utilizing the same or similar chord progression. A musicologist retained by the defence stated in court documents that the four-chord sequence in question was used in a number of songs before Gaye’s hit came out in 1973.
The copyright lawsuit garnered significant attention from industry members, as it could have set a precedent for protections on songwriters’ creations and opened the door to legal challenges elsewhere. It was the second trial in a year for Sheeran, who successfully testified at a London court last April in a case centred around his song Shape Of You, stating that the lawsuit was emblematic of copyright litigation going too far. The judge ruled in his favour.
Sheeran’s Thinking Out Loud topped America’s Billboard Hot 100 charts when it was released and won him a Song of the Year prize at the Grammys in 2016. The music industry has seen a surge in copyright trials in recent years, notably in 2016 when Gaye’s family successfully sued Robin Thicke, Pharrell Williams, and T.I. over similarities between the song Blurred Lines and Gaye’s Got to Give It Up. Sheeran concluded his statement by saying, “I am just a guy with a guitar who loves writing music for people to enjoy. I am not and will never allow myself to be a piggy bank for anyone to shake.”
