Ed Sheeran releases statement after winning plagiarism trial
Ed Sheeran has released a statement following the win of his copyright infringement trial.
The singer-songwriter had been accused of plagiarism over his Grammy-winning 2014 song 'Thinking Out Loud' and its alleged resemblance to Marvin Gaye's classic hit 'Let's Get It On'.
Sheeran had been sued by the heirs of the late Ed Townsend who co-wrote Marvin Gaye's 1973 track.
But today in Manhattan (May 4), Sheeran came out on top and won the case, with it being determined he did not copy Gaye's hit song.
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Commenting on the verdict, Sheeran said in a statement outside the courthouse: "It's devastating to be accused of stealing someone else's song when we've put so much work into our livelihoods.
"I'm just a guy with a guitar who loves writing music for people to enjoy. I am not and never will allow myself to be a piggy bank for anyone to shake."
The 'Shape Of You' singer had felt so strongly about the case that he promised to quit the music industry altogether if found guilty of plagiarising the song.
Joking about his earlier threat, Ed continued: "It looks like I’m not going to have to give up my day job after all.
"But at the same time I am absolutely frustrated that baseless claims like this are allowed to go to court at all.
"If the jury had decided this matter the other way we might as well say goodbye to the creative freedom of songwriters."
He added that artists need to be able to create original music 'without worrying at every step on the way that said creativity will be wrongly called into question'.
Also briefly referring to having to miss his grandmother's funeral in Ireland due to the court case, he noted: "I will never get that time back."
Kathryn Townsend Griffin, the daughter of Townsend had argued that there are 'striking similarities' between the two songs, as well as 'overt common elements' that violate their copyright.
A major part of the estate's argument fell on a clip from one of Ed's concerts, in which he played a mashup of the two songs together.
Ed had outright denied the Townsend Griffin's claims, and argued on the stand that many pop songs end up sharing similar elements, including chord progressions and notes, without plagiarism being at play.
He added he'd have to have been 'quite an idiot' to plagiarise a song and then perform a mashup of it 'on a stage in front of 20,000 people'.
As part of his defence, Sheeran played his guitar on the stand to demonstrate how he wrote 'Thinking Out Loud' and how some songs fit into others.
In her closing argument, the singer's attorney, Ilene S Farkas, said the trial should 'never have been brought' in the first place.
She told the court: “Ed Townsend did not create these basic musical building blocks.
"Ed Townsend was not the first songwriter to use and combine these elements. It was not original."
Topics: Ed Sheeran, News, Celebrity, Music
Ali Condon