Marvin Gaye’s estate probably thinks they should get a piece of every song by every artist written post 1965. Maybe the Robert Johnson estate should sue every blues songwriter. Why not allow Louis Armstrong to get a piece of every jazz recording as well
No one is safe.
A federal jury in Los Angeles a few weeks ago decided that Katy Perry’s 2013 hit “Dark Horse” copied a 2008 Christian rap song “Joyful Noise,” by Marcus Gray, who is known as Flame. It seems that Katy and her team have to shell out $2.8 million in damages to people who I feel don’t deserve a dime. The songs sound nothing like each other.
I felt the same way when I learned about the copyright infringement trial regarding the songs ‘Blurred Lines’ by Robin Thicke and ‘Got To Give It Up’ by Marvin Gaye. It appears that trial set a new standard. Copyright infringement is now extended beyond melody and lyrics and appears to include the feel of the music.
Are these recent court cases unfairly punishing songwriters for copying the feel of a song or style of music? Are artists to be punished for using generic musical elements found in thousands of songs?
Now that streaming services are allowing people to have access to millions of songs at their fingertips, ambulance chasing attorneys are licking their chops for a potential payday. Unethical lawyers can find tunes to threaten songwriters with legal action due to courts making decisions like the ones mentioned above.
If the standard for copyright infringement from now on is feel, and other musical elements of recordings that merely sound similar, get ready for the new wild west in copyright land. There is an upcoming trial in the Ninth Circuit over whether Ed Sheeran’s “Thinking Out Loud” composition infringed on the copyright of “Let’s Get It On” by Marvin Gaye. Maybe a decision there will clarify what constitutes copyright infringement from this point forward. We’ll see.
I read a recent Wall Street Journal article called, “Who Wrote ‘Stairway to Heaven’? Music Industry Braces for Copyright Suits.”
“Now, some attorneys, musicologists and songwriters say these cases are unfairly punishing artists for using generic musical elements. Many are predicting more copyright cases—historically settled behind closed doors, if contested at all—will go to trial, with streaming services making nearly every song in history available for comparison, and courts deciding that songs that merely sound similar are infringing. Others say these cases help protect the creativity of artists. Cases currently before judges involve modern hits, including Ed Sheeran’s “Thinking Out Loud” and the classic rock anthem “Stairway to Heaven.”
Read the rest HERE: