Singer Lana Del Rey said that she's being sued by British band Radiohead, who find that her song "Get Free" is too similar to their breakthrough hit, "Creep." Radiohead's publisher denies legal action.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/H. Marie
Advertisement
Just a rip-off? Plagiarism in music
A jury concluded that Ed Sheeran did not copy Marvin Gaye's 1973 R&B hit "Let's Get It On." Here are other high-profile cases of alleged plagiarism.
Image: Luigi Rizzo/Pacific/Nancy Kaye/AP/picture alliance
Ed Sheeran vs. Marvin Gaye
Ed Sheeran's 2014 hit "Thinking Out Loud" uses a very common pop song chord progression, which can also be found in Marvin Gaye's legendary "Let's Get It On." The heirs of Ed Townsend, the co-writer of the Gaye classic, sued the British pop star for copyright infringement. A jury decided in Sheeran's favor; he had already won in a similar copyright suit in 2022 over his song "Shape of You."
Image: Peter Cziborra/REUTERS
Childish Gambino vs. Kidd Wes
With its scathing commentary on racial inequality, police brutality and gun violence, "This Is America" made history in 2019 by becoming the first rap song to win a Grammy Award for best song and best record. Childish Gambino, aka Donald Glover, was later sued for allegedly lifting its "lyrical theme, content and structure" from a song by rapper Kidd Wes. The case was dismissed in March 2023.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Images/J. Salangsang
Nicki Minaj vs. Tracy Chapman
In court documents made public on January 7, 2021, rapper Nicki Minaj was forced to pay $450,000 (€369,000) to singer-songwriter Tracy Chapman for ripping off Chapman's song "Baby Can I Hold You" in her tune "Sorry." Minaj's team had repeatedly asked for permission but was turned down. Eventually, however, the song was leaked on the radio and became a hit.
Image: AP Photo/picture alliance
Led Zeppelin vs. Spirit
"Stairway To Heaven" is one of the most popular songs in rock music history. But was it really written by Jimmy Page (center right) and Robert Plant (center left)? The heirs of Randy Wolfe, singer and guitarist of the band Spirit, expressed strong doubts in 2014. On March 9, 2020, a US appeals court reinstated a ruling that Led Zeppelin did not steal "Stairway to Heaven" from Wolfe.
Image: picture-alliance/Photoshot
Lana Del Rey vs. Radiohead vs. The Hollies
It can't be denied that Lana Del Rey's song "Get Free" sounds a lot like "Creep," Radiohead's famous hit. The band, therefore, wanted writers' credits on the song. Ironically, some parts of "Creep" have been copied as well, namely from The Hollies' "The Air That I Breathe" from 1974. In this case, the two bands came to an out-of-court settlement.
Image: Imago/PA Images/D. Lawson
Sam Smith vs. Tom Petty
The music industry has been haunted by numerous plagiarism controversies in recent years. In 2014, Sam Smith's "Stay With Me" triggered some uproar. The song was said to have been inspired by Tom Petty's "I Won't Back Down." Rock legend Petty, who died in 2017, then obtained some of the royalties. But he wasn't angry, stating that the similarities may have occurred incidentally.
Image: picture-allianc/empics/Y. Mok
Robin Thicke & Pharrell Williams vs. Marvin Gaye
Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams were less lucky. After it turned out that their successful hit "Blurred Lines" was a rip-off of Marvin Gaye's song "Got to Give It Up," they had to dig deep into their pockets. In 2013, they had to pay roughly $7 million to Gaye's heirs, even though they continued to deny that they had copied Gaye's song.
Image: picture-alliance/AP
Moses Pelham & Sabrina Setlur vs. Kraftwerk
In one case, just two seconds of sound resulted in a 20-year lawsuit that raised the question: Where does plagiarism start, especially in the digital era? Music producer Moses Pelham sampled two seconds of the beat of "Metall auf Metall," a hit by the German band Kraftwerk, for the song "Nur mir" by rapper Sabrina Setlur. The case ended up before the European Court of Justice.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/RMV via ZUMA Press/Mike Tudor
Shakira vs. Ramon Arias Vasquez
Yet another pop star accused of plagiarism is Shakira. In 2014, a US federal court came to the conclusion that her hit "Loca" was an illegal copy of the song "Loca con su Tiguere" by Ramon Arias Vasquez from the Dominican Republic. Several million records of Shakira's "Loca" were sold all over the world.
Image: Getty Images/R.Juergens
9 images1 | 9
Following reports by British tabloid The Sun, American singer Lana Del Rey said on Twitter that Radiohead is suing her for plagiarism.
Radiohead publisher Warner/Chappell has since confirmed it wants writing credits — but denies a lawsuit.
"It's true that we've been in discussions since August of last year with Lana Del Rey's representatives," the publisher said in a statement. "It's clear that the verses of 'Get Free' use musical elements found in the verses of 'Creep' and we've requested that this be acknowledged in favor of all writers of 'Creep.'"
"To set the record straight, no lawsuit has been issued and Radiohead have not said they 'will only accept 100 percent' of the publishing of 'Get Free.'"
The dispute centers on "Get Free," the last song on her album "Lust for Life," released in July 2017.
The opening chords and tempo of the track are similar to Radiohead's "Creep," the band's debut single that propelled them to stardom in 1993.
Radiohead
Ironically, Radiohead were previously sued for lifting the chord progression and melody on "Creep" from a song by the Hollies, "The Air That I Breathe." The writers of the song from 1974, Albert Hammond and Mike Hazlewood, were added to the song's writing credits and now obtain a percentage of its royalties.
Musician and and BBC Radio 4 satirical comedian Mitch Benn commented on the incongruity of the lawsuit on Twitter:
High stakes in copyright disputes
The music industry has recently faced a series of high-profile copyright disputes, including, in 2014, Sam Smith for "Stay With Me," deemed too similar to Tom Petty's "I Won't Back Down." The late American rocker was added to the credits.
Most spectacularly, over $7 million were awarded to Marvin Gaye's estate when a jury decided that Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams' 2013 smash hit "Blurred Lines" plagiarized the soul legend's "Got to Give It Up."