Ed Sheeran offers reason why he sang 'Let's Get It On' in concert during plagiarism trial
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Ed Sheeran has offered a reason as to why he sang 'Let's Get It On' in concert during his plagiarism trial.
The singer explained to the court exactly why he performed Marvin Gaye's soul classic, which he has recently come under fire over for allegedly copying it in his hit-single 'Thinking Out Loud'.
Alongside hitting back against the allegations that he stole material from one of Gaye’s greatest hits, Ed has also opened up a little more about his own creative process.
Sheeran took the stand in New York on Tuesday (25 April) after Kathryn Townsend Griffin, a heir of Gaye’s co-writer Ed Townsend, accused him of copyright infringement with his 2014 chart-topper.
The high-profile suit, which was initially filed back in 2017 - just three years after 'Thinking Out Loud' was released - claims that the star and co-writer Amy Wadge copy and pasted an ascending four-chord sequence alongside its rhythm.
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Sheeran has since been blasted for the track, which allegedly shares 'striking similarities' to Gaye's 1973 soul anthem as well as 'overt common elements'.
During the suit, Ben Crump, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, argued that a clip of Sheeran performing a live mashup of the two hit singles during a concert in Zurich was 'a confession' of the alleged plagiarism.
Crump even went as far as to call the concert 'smoking gun' proof that the singer had violated copyrights.
However, the 'Bad Habits' singer has maintained that no copycat behaviour was involved and declared 'most songs fit over most songs' after defending himself amidst the trial.
"If I had done what you’re accusing me of doing, I’d be a quite an idiot to stand on a stage in front of 20,000 people and do that," he said.
And the trial, which is now in its second week, has only got more intense.
On Monday (1 May), Sheeran took to the witness stand to offer court audiences a mini-concert in which he sung and played his guitar as part of his defence.
He showed the jury how he commonly uses mashups to 'spice it up a bit' at live concerts, opting to blend together two songs that share similar chords.
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"If it’s a love song, you might mash it up with another love song," the music maestro explained, before suggesting over well-known ballads that would also work well with the assaulting track.
Such included Elvis Presley’s version of 'Can’t Help Falling in Love' alongside the beloved Whitney Houston rendition of 'I Will Always Love You'.
Sheeran’s attorney, Ilene Farkas, asked her client if he had knowingly plagiarised anything from Gaye's smash-hit when creating 'Thinking out Loud', to which he responded: "No."
The singer went on to say he was stunned at the weighty accusations and couldn't wrap his head around the fact that someone would 'diminish' one of his songs 'by saying [he] stole it'.
He revealed: "I find it really insulting. When you write songs, somebody comes after you."
The hit-maker has since claimed he'll quit music altogether if he is found guilty of plagiarising the song in question
Featured Image Credit: REUTERS / Alamy Associated Press / Alamy
Topics: Celebrity, Music, Ed Sheeran
