Ed Sheeran is a name synonymous with good music. The English singer-songwriter is one of the world’s best-selling music artists with over 150 million records sold globally. The ‘Shape of You‘ singer is also the most followed artist on the music-sharing application Spotify.
Recently, the 32-year-old was embroiled in a legal battle over alleged plagiarism claims. He was dragged to court over copyright infringement. However, thankfully the jury cleared him of all charges and found him not liable. So let’s find out the details of this case and the final verdict.
Related: “Im Done, Im Stopping”: Ed Sheeran Vows To Quit Music Business If Found Guilty Of Plagiarism
Ed Sheeran Found Not Guilty Of Plagiarism By The Jury
On Thursday, English musician Ed Sheeran was found not liable by a jury in Manhattan federal court. According to Variety, it was over the claims that he lifted some musical elements from the Marvin Gaye hit from the 1970s, ‘Let’s Get It On.’
The plaintiff alleged that Sheeran used those in his own song, ‘Thinking Out Loud.’ Its verdict came just under two weeks after the trial. Outside of the courtroom, Sheeran read a statement.
“I am obviously very happy with the outcome of the case, and it looks like I’m not going to have to retire from my day job after all,” he said. “But at the same time, I am absolutely frustrated that baseless claims like this are allowed to go to court at all.”
He added in front of the reporters, “If the jury had decided this matter the other way, we might as well say goodbye to the creative freedom of songwriters.”
In case you missed: Why Adele And Ed Sheeran Will Not Perform At The Coronation Of King Charles III?
Sheeran Vowed To Quit Music If The Charges Were Proven
The charges were put up by Kathryn Townsend Griffin who is the daughter of Ed Townsend, the co-writer of ‘Let’s Get It On‘. After the verdict was read, Sheeran and Kathryn hugged each other. He even invited her to one of his concerts.
He had earlier vowed to quit music forever if the charges are proven against him. “I find it really insulting to devote my whole life to being a performer and a songwriter and have someone diminish it,” he said.
In their lawsuit, the Townsend family claims: “The melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic compositions in ‘Thinking’ are not the product of independent creation.”
You might also like to read: Who Accused Ed Sheeran Of Copying Shape Of You Song?
