ED WINS
Ed Sheeran breaks silence as he WINS copyright battle over Shape of You after being accused of being a ‘magpie’
ED Sheeran broke his silence today after WINNING a copyright battle over his hit song Shape of You.
Sheeran, 31, and his Shape Of You co-writers denied ripping off songwriters Sami Chokri and Ross O'Donoghue and their 2015 song Oh Why.
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Chokri and O'Donoghue claimed the chorus of Sheeran’s tune, which goes “oh I oh I oh I”, was nicked from their chorus “oh why oh why oh why”.
But in a ruling today, Mr Justice Zacaroli found the singer had not even heard the “Oh Why” song before writing his own hit and concluded he "neither deliberately nor subconsciously" copied the phrase.
In a video posted online shortly after, Sheeran said he was happy with the result, but believes "claims like this are way too common".
He told fans: "There’s only so many notes and very few chords used in pop music. Coincidence is bound to happen.
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“I don’t want to take away from the pain and hurt suffered from both sides of this case, but I just want to say I’m not an entity, I’m not a corporation, I’m a human being, I’m a father, I’m a husband, I’m a son."
He added: “Lawsuits are not a pleasant experience and I hope that this ruling it means in the future baseless claims like this will be avoided, this really does have to end."
Sheeran and his Shape Of You co-authors launched legal proceedings in May 2018, asking the High Court to declare they had not infringed Chokri and Mr O'Donoghue's copyright.
In July 2018, Chokri and Mr O'Donoghue issued their own claim for "copyright infringement, damages and an account of profits in relation to the alleged infringement".
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During an 11-day trial in London last month, Sheeran was told he was a "magpie" who "borrows" ideas from unknown songwriters without acknowledgement.
The star denied the accusations, insisting he "always tried to be completely fair" in crediting people who contribute to his albums.
Sheeran previously told the court he was trying to "clear my name" and denied using litigation to "intimidate" Chokri and Mr O'Donoghue into abandoning the copyright dispute.
In his ruling today, Mr Justice Zacaroli told the court: "While there are similarities between the OW (Oh Why) Hook and the OI (Oh I) phrase, there are also significant differences.
"I am satisfied that Mr Sheeran did not subconsciously copy Oh Why in creating Shape."
All three Shape Of You co-authors denied allegations of copying and said they do not remember hearing Oh Why before the legal fight.
Today, they said they were "grateful" for the judgement but said it was "painful" to "hear someone publicly and aggressively" challenge their integrity.
In a joint statement, co-writers Ed Sheeran, John McDaid and Steven McCutcheon, said: "‘Shape of You’ is original. We did not copy the Defendants’ song.
It is so painful to have to defend yourself against accusations that you have done something that you haven’t done and would never do.
Ed Sheeran, John McDaid, Steven McCutcheon
"We have always sought to clear or to acknowledge our influences and collaborators. It doesn’t matter how successful something appears to be, we still respect it."
They added: “It is so painful to have to defend yourself against accusations that you have done something that you haven’t done and would never do."
Ian Mill QC, representing the three men, previously said the legal battle had been "deeply traumatising", arguing the case should never have reached trial.
But the Oh Why co-writers' lawyer, Andrew Sutcliffe QC, labelled Sheeran a "magpie", claiming he "habitually copies" other artists and that it is "extremely likely" he had previously heard Oh Why.
He alleged that Sheeran's lawyers brought the legal proceedings because PRS for music - the industry body that collects and distributes royalties - had "frozen" payments for UK broadcast and performance income from Shape Of You.
Sheeran was targeted with a "concerted plan" by Chokri's former management to secure his interest in the Oh Why singer, the court was told, with Oh Why being sent to those around the star.
It was also claimed Sheeran must have been aware of Chokri because they appeared on YouTube channel SBTV at about the same time, they shared friends, Chokri had sent messages to him on Twitter, and Sheeran had allegedly shouted his name at a performance.
Chokri told the trial he felt "robbed" by the music star and was left "shocked" when he first heard Shape Of You on the radio.
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Musicology experts gave contrasting views at the trial over whether Shape Of You has "significant similarities" or is "distinctively different" from Oh Why.
Shape Of You was a worldwide hit, becoming the best-selling song of 2017 in the UK and the most streamed track in Spotify's history.
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