British pop star Ed Sheeran appeared in court on Friday after he was sued by two songwriters for allegedly stealing for the success of “Shape of You”.
On the first day of the trial, which is scheduled to continue for three weeks, the spectator appeared in the High Court in London, wearing a dark suit and tie.
Sami Chokri and Rose O’Donoghue have been accused of being somewhat inspired by their “O Why” title for the melody of their planetary success in 2017, the world’s best-selling title “Shape of You”.
Both songs were played in court on Friday, presided over by Judge Anthony Jagaroli.
Plaintiffs’ attorney, Andrew Sutcliffe, argues that the “similarity” between certain passages is “fast” and that they are “almost identical”.
“Mr. Sheeran is undoubtedly very talented, he is a genius. But this is a Macbeth, “he added, referring to the bird that is sometimes accused of being a thief.
“He borrows ideas and throws them in his songs, sometimes he admits it, sometimes he doesn’t,” he continued: “It depends on who you are, if he thinks he can do it without punishment”.
The lawyer pointed out to his clients that “the most talented songwriters deserve the same respect and recognition as any other artist.”
Ed Sheeran and his co-authors, Steven McCutcheon and John McDight, denied the allegations.
They had applied to the High Court in May 2018 to recognize that there was no copyright infringement.
Two months later, in July, Chokri and O’Donoghue began legal action against them.
According to The Telegraph, the royalties have been suspended by PRS, a joint venture with Shape of You, valued at 20 20 million (currently 24 million).
In 2017, Ed Sheeran became the world’s best-selling artist, according to the International Federation of Phonographic Industries (IFPI) with his third album, “Dwight”, which included the single “Shape of You”.
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