Robin Thicke Sues to Protect 'Blurred Lines' from Marvin Gaye's Family
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Thicke, Pharrell Williams and Clifford Harris, Jr. claim they were threatened by both Gaye's family and Funkadelic, each asserting that the summer hit wasn't original.
In order to shield "Blurred Lines," the hottest hit of the summer, Robin Thicke, Pharrell Williams and Clifford Harris, Jr. are going to court.
A lawsuit was filed Thursday in California federal court by the trio against Marvin Gaye's family and Bridgeport Music, which owns some of Funkadelic's compositions. At issue are complaints about similarities between "Blurred Lines" and at least two songs.
According to the suit, a copy of which was obtained by The Hollywood Reporter, "Plaintiffs, who have the utmost respect for and admiration of Marvin Gaye, Funkadelic and their musical legacies, reluctantly file this action in the face of multiple adverse claims from alleged successors in interest to those artists. Defendants continue to insist that plaintiffs' massively successful composition, 'Blurred Lines,' copies 'their' compositions."
Read the lawsuit here. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/sites/default/files/custom/Documents/ESQ/Robin_Thicke_Complaint for Declaratory Relief 2013.08.15.pdf
The suit claims the Gaye family is alleging that "Blurred Lines" and Gaye's "Got to Give It Up" "feel" or "sound" the same, and that the "Gaye defendants are claiming ownership of an entire genre, as opposed to a specific work."
As for Funkadelic, there's said to be claimed similarity between Thicke'? and Funakedlic's "Sexy Ways."
"But there are no similarities between plaintiffs' composition and those the claimants allege they own, other than commonplace musical elements," states the lawsuit. "Plaintiffs created a hit and did it without copying anyone else's composition."
A New York TImes critic has noted that "Blurred Lines" is "influenced heavily" by Gaye’s “Got to Give It Up,” but the lawsuit makes the point that "being reminiscent of a 'sound' is not copyright infringement. The intent in producing 'Blurred Lines' was to evoke an era."
STORY: Robin Thicke's Rar...No. 1 Song
The Gayes and Bridgeport are said to be threatening litigation should the plaintiffs not pay a monetary settlement. Rather than wait for such a lawsuit to proceed, the plaintiffs are going to court to determine the parties' respective rights and obligations.
In seeking a judgment, Thicke, Williams and Harris Jr. are not only looking for a declaration that their song doesn't violate the defendants' rights by copying their songs, but also that the "Gayes do not have an interest in the copyright to the composition 'Got To Give It Up' sufficient to confer standing on them to pursue claims of infringement of that composition."
The plaintiffs are represented by Howard King and Stephen Rothschild of King, Holmes, Paterno & Berliner.
THR has reached out to the defendants for comment and update with a response.
In order to shield "Blurred Lines," the hottest hit of the summer, Robin Thicke, Pharrell Williams and Clifford Harris, Jr. are going to court.
A lawsuit was filed Thursday in California federal court by the trio against Marvin Gaye's family and Bridgeport Music, which owns some of Funkadelic's compositions. At issue are complaints about similarities between "Blurred Lines" and at least two songs.
According to the suit, a copy of which was obtained by The Hollywood Reporter, "Plaintiffs, who have the utmost respect for and admiration of Marvin Gaye, Funkadelic and their musical legacies, reluctantly file this action in the face of multiple adverse claims from alleged successors in interest to those artists. Defendants continue to insist that plaintiffs' massively successful composition, 'Blurred Lines,' copies 'their' compositions."
Read the lawsuit here. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/sites/default/files/custom/Documents/ESQ/Robin_Thicke_Complaint for Declaratory Relief 2013.08.15.pdf
The suit claims the Gaye family is alleging that "Blurred Lines" and Gaye's "Got to Give It Up" "feel" or "sound" the same, and that the "Gaye defendants are claiming ownership of an entire genre, as opposed to a specific work."
As for Funkadelic, there's said to be claimed similarity between Thicke'? and Funakedlic's "Sexy Ways."
"But there are no similarities between plaintiffs' composition and those the claimants allege they own, other than commonplace musical elements," states the lawsuit. "Plaintiffs created a hit and did it without copying anyone else's composition."
A New York TImes critic has noted that "Blurred Lines" is "influenced heavily" by Gaye’s “Got to Give It Up,” but the lawsuit makes the point that "being reminiscent of a 'sound' is not copyright infringement. The intent in producing 'Blurred Lines' was to evoke an era."
STORY: Robin Thicke's Rar...No. 1 Song
The Gayes and Bridgeport are said to be threatening litigation should the plaintiffs not pay a monetary settlement. Rather than wait for such a lawsuit to proceed, the plaintiffs are going to court to determine the parties' respective rights and obligations.
In seeking a judgment, Thicke, Williams and Harris Jr. are not only looking for a declaration that their song doesn't violate the defendants' rights by copying their songs, but also that the "Gayes do not have an interest in the copyright to the composition 'Got To Give It Up' sufficient to confer standing on them to pursue claims of infringement of that composition."
The plaintiffs are represented by Howard King and Stephen Rothschild of King, Holmes, Paterno & Berliner.
THR has reached out to the defendants for comment and update with a response.
Comments
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Such disrespect.
Slave the Slaves. -
? is sooo obvious. Its easy to hear Give It Up. ? snakes
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Robin Thicke is a culture jacker..
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How is he a culture jacker when he gives black music it's props?
It ain't just a white boy going to court.
Stop hating. -
LOL. WTF? How you goin claim ownership over an entire genre? This ? is dumb. The only reason Gaye's family is claiming anything is because the song is a massive hit. There are a million songs you could say "feel" and "sound" like another song.
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Get ya money.
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MzGrahamBitches wrote: »How is he a culture jacker when he gives black music it's props?
It ain't just a white boy going to court.
Stop hating.
Props or not, rappers even have to pay those royalties if someone comes calling abut a sample. He's eating off their plate but denying it. That's foul. -
Unless you make hits off your own ingenuity, you have to pay the price.
djsovernt.wordpress.com/2009/03/17/eric-sermons-just-like-music-the-200000-story/ -
You pay royalties when you sample another person's song.
Just cause they got the same 'feel' when they heard it doesn't mean ? .
How is it going to have the same 'feel' as two different songs?
Somebody is just trying to make some money. lol @ the 'family' suing..fall back. -
this is not surprising... and lol@the white supporting this blatant theft...
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MzGrahamBitches wrote: »You pay royalties when you sample another person's song.
Just cause they got the same 'feel' when they heard it doesn't mean ? .
How is it going to have the same 'feel' as two different songs?
Somebody is just trying to make some money. lol @ the 'family' suing..fall back.
Stop it -
lol..YOU stop it!
So I guess TI and Pharrell are also at fault? I mean they are listed as co-plaintiffs. -
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Michael Jackson's people need to get on it cause I've been hearing a lot of songs with similar 'feels' as his classics lately.
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co-sign the audacity of them suing because it has the same feel.
but if they did sample or interpolate then they should pay. -
You can't copyright a sound. Motown would have been eating off everyone in their time if that was the case.
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unspoken_respect wrote: »MzGrahamBitches wrote: »How is he a culture jacker when he gives black music it's props?
It ain't just a white boy going to court.
Stop hating.
Props or not, rappers even have to pay those royalties if someone comes calling abut a sample. He's eating off their plate but denying it. That's foul.
U can't compare sampling to this. Sampling is taking the song itself and then reusing it.
Two songs simply sounding similar isn't the same at all. -
Its a straight marvin gaye sample. Cmon robin.
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BlackGerald wrote: »Its a straight marvin gaye sample. Cmon robin.
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robin thicke needs to be stopped anyway... dude can't sing for ? live.
? is an obvious rip off of got to give it up.
but i guess these white folks gon do like vanilla ice did and say "it's not ding ding ding digga ding ding, it's ding ding ding diggada ding ding"
see?? totally different!!!
? culture vultures.
funny how we are discussing tone with a group that is notorious for being tone deaf.
Well don't go see him live. Most people sound better on their albums. He isn't exactly a culture vulture because his first album had R&B and Alternative but it didn't catch on. He just focused on one. -
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So what was Ray Charles, Prince, & MJ
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According to the host on access Hollywood entertainment show robin thicke was listening to the song in the recording studio.