Pop singer Ed Sheeran took the stand on Tuesday during a closely watched copyright trial accusing him of copying his ballad “Thinking Out Loud” from Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On,” telling a jury that he and an associate had wrote their song based on their own experiences.
mr. Sheeran appeared in federal court in Manhattan wearing a dark suit and blue tie, his red hair tousled. his co-writer, Amy Wadge, had independently created “Thinking Out Loud”.
“Yes, Amy Wadge and I wrote the song ‘Thinking Out Loud’,” testified Mr Sheeran, explaining that they created the song, about holding on to romance over a long life, after sharing the affection between his elderly grandparents seen.
The case was brought by the family of Ed Townsend, a producer and songwriter who co-created “Let’s Get It On” with Gaye in 1973. in a signature syncopated rhythm – was dubbed by Mr. Sheeran. Lawyers for Mr. Sheeran argue that those elements are basic musical building blocks that are in the public domain and have turned up in numerous other songs.
In opening statements Ben Crump, an attorney for the plaintiffs, urged the jury to use “common sense” when comparing the songs, saying the evidence in the case included what he described as “a smoking gun” : A fan video of a concert in which Sheeran performed a ‘mash-up’ or medley, moving seamlessly between ‘Thinking Out Loud’ and ‘Let’s Get It On’.
“That concert video is a confession,” said Mr. Crump, who is best known as a civil rights attorney who represented the family of George Floyd, who was killed by police in 2020.
After a delay in which the judge in the case, Louis L. Stanton, privately viewed the video, it was played to the jury. Another attorney for the plaintiffs, Keisha D. Rice, asked Mr. Sheeran about the occurrence.
He said that he often performs such mash-ups in concert, and that he is able to do so because many pop tunes contain only a handful of chords.
“Most pop songs fit over most pop songs,” said Mr. Sheeran. “I’m just mixing a song with another song,” he added.
When questioned, Mr. Sheeran was never directly challenged whether he had copied from “Let’s Get It On”, which he said he had first heard in an “Austin Powers” film.
He described part of the creation of “Thinking Out Loud”, which was released in 2014, saying it started with Ms. Wadge strumming some chords on a guitar. He added some more, and they “went back and forth” on other parts.
“That’s kind of how songwriting works,” Mr. Sheeran.
Mr. Sheeran also discussed another influence on “Thinking Out Loud”, saying that once the song was recorded, “it sounded like it mimicked Van Morrison, production wise.” He quoted several of Mr. Morrison’s songs with similar chord structures.
After his song came out, Mr. Sheeran testified, Mr. Morrison visited him for breakfast and said how much he loved the song. The two are now friends, Mr. Sheeran said.
Ilene S. Farkas, a lawyer for Sheeran, said in her opening statement that the two songs share commonplace ingredients that appear in numerous songs, and are in the public domain for use by any musician.
She said the plaintiffs “cannot own these common musical elements”.
The first witness, called just before noon, was Kathryn Griffin Townsend, Mr. Townsend’s daughter and his only surviving direct heir.
Mrs. Griffin Townsend wore a brown coat with the word “integrity” on the back and testified that once “Thinking Out Loud” came out, numerous acquaintances in the music business called to alert her and said the resemblance struck them. . “Some said the words just changed,” she said people would tell her. “It’s ‘Let’s Get It On.'”
She said she had tried to reach representatives for Sony/ATV, the music publishing giant that represents Townsend’s catalog – as well as Mr. Sheeran’s – but was never able to reach anyone there and got no response. However, during cross-examination, Mr. Sheeran’s lawyers pointed out that Ms. Griffin Townsend’s lawyers had extensive correspondence with Sony/ATV regarding her claim.
She said she still wanted someone at Sony/ATV – the company has since been renamed Sony Music Publishing – to simply explain the business to her.
“Paper doesn’t talk to me,” she said. “I work better with human contact.”
Ms Griffin Townsend praised Mr Sheeran as “a great artist with a great future” and said she reluctantly took the case, saying she was not a “copyright troll” – a term usually describing an aggressive and litigious copyright owner whose primary strategy for making money is threatening or suing.
“I have to protect my father’s legacy,” she said.
Mr. Sheeran’s celebrity status was noticed throughout the courthouse, with heads spinning as he walked in and out of the courtroom, a public bathroom, and even the cafeteria, where he ordered a meatball.
At the end of Mr Sheeran’s testimony, his lawyers said they would not question him but would call him back to the witness box at another point during the trial.
