Ed Sheeran sued over Shape of You. The what and why
In 2017, we have all danced to Ed Sheeran’s famous track Shape of You. Many are still dancing to it, am sure. Recently, Ed Sheeran was questioned by a London's High Court for this famous track due to copyright issues.
Shape of You was a massive hit in 2017 and it broke many musical records. Shape of You from Ed Sheeran’s album Divide was written by Tameka Cottle, Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs, Johnny McDaid, Kandi Burruss, Ed Sheeran and Steve Mac.
Now, a lawsuit has been filed against Ed Sheeran for copying parts of a song called Oh Why by Sami Chokri and Ross O'Donoghue. Oh Why was released in 2015.
THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME
Before this, Ed Sheeran has been sued over copyright issues twice. In 2016, he faced a legal lawsuit over his single Photograph, which has been settled.
He gave a part of the ownership and paid around $5.2 million in an out-of-court settlement.
Two years later, he was sued for $100 million for another hit, Thinking Out Loud. And this one is still going on.
SHEERAN DENIES SHAPE OF YOU COPYRIGHT CLAIMS
On March 7, during the hearing, Sheeran denied all allegations and said that he does not borrow ideas from unknown songwriters.
Chokri and O'Donoghue have claimed that the 'Oh I, Oh I, Oh I, Oh I' hook of the song is very similar to their track.
(You can listen to Oh Why here and find out for yourself how similar - or different - they are)
The songwriters claimed that Shareen borrows ideas and “throws them into his songs, sometimes he will acknowledge it but sometimes he won’t”.
Sheeran has denied all the claims and cited examples when he has given credit to lesser-known artists.
As per a BBC report, he said, “Even so, if I had heard Oh Why at the time and had referenced it, I would have taken steps to clear it. I have always tried to be completely fair in crediting anyone who makes any contribution to any song I write.”
“I do refer to other works on occasion when I write, as do many songwriters. If there is a reference to another work, I notify my team so that steps can be taken to obtain clearance,” Sheeran added.
What do you think?