Marvin Gaye's Family Now Claim Robin Thicke Stole A Second Song
They're going after EMI now as well.
A few months ago we heard that Robin Thicke, Pharrell Williams and TI had “reluctantly” filed a lawsuit against the family of Marvin Gaye after they accused the trio of stealing their father's song Got To Give It Up for their smash hit track Blurred Lines.
It was then reported that the family had rejected a six figure settlement in order to stave off a copyright showdown over the song, though the family have denied that such an offer was ever made.
Now we hear, via The Hollywood Reporter, that Gaye's family are countersuing and now going after Thicke for copyright infringement for a second song as well, suggesting that his 2011 track Love After War borrows too heavily from Marvin Gaye's 1976 track After The Dance.
The two songs are below:
Don't miss a beat with our FREE daily newsletter
The family are now also chasing after Gaye's publisher, EMI, claiming the company has failed to protect the songs of the legendary R&B artist, has failed to remain neutral and has attempted to intimidate the family in an effort to stop them filing legal action.
The family also accuses representatives of Thicke, Williams and EMI of planting a false story in the world music press about their declining of a large cash settlement.
In their suit, the family have reportedly asked that EMI lose all profits they have made from Thicke's Blurred Lines as well as the rights to Gaye's catalogue.
Early criticism of the Gaye family's accusations about the song's inspiration have said that they are attempting to claim ownership of an entire genre of music, Thicke's lawsuit saying the song was written to “evoke an era”.
A lengthy musicologist report provides an interesting study of the two songs' similarities, concluding that there are eight substantially similar features, though admitting that further analysis would be required to determine whether or not there were more similarities to call into account.
Blurred Lines has hit number one in 14 countries and has gone seven times platinum in Australia since its release in March of this year.
More From Our Network
