Ed Sheeran

2022 - 3 - 7

Post cover — Image courtesy of "Cumnock Chronicle"

Ed Sheeran lawsuit: Star denies 'borrowing' ideas for hit Shape Of You (Cumnock Chronicle)

ED Sheeran has denied “borrowing” ideas from unknown songwriters before a judge amid a High Court copyright trial over his hit song Shape Of…

In July 2018, Chokri and O’Donoghue issued their own claim for “copyright infringement, damages and an account of profits in relation to the alleged infringement”. They argue that a central “Oh I” hook in Shape Of You is “strikingly similar” to an “Oh Why” refrain in their own composition. Chokri and O’Donoghue allege that Shape Of You infringes “particular lines and phrases” of their song Oh Why, released in 2015.

Ed Sheeran sings Nina Simone during Shape of You copyright case (BBC News)

The star serenades London's High Court in an attempt to prove he didn't copy his hit Shape of You.

"I want to know how you got that." "I didn't want to put it out and I was subsequently proved wrong." "It was all of us three bouncing back and forth in a circle," he said. "That's a song I wrote last January. How did you get that?" "I'm a music fan, I like music, I listen to music," Sheeran said. Asked whether his final melody bore a similarity to Chokri's song, he added: "Fundamentally, yes.

Ed Sheeran Shape Of You copyright trial: Star tells High Court he is ... (Sky News)

Sheeran has spent two days in the witness box at the High Court. The singer-songwriter and two co-writers are accused of copying parts of Oh Why, ...

Sheeran said this was not the case. Sheeran replied: "I'm trying to clear my name here... During his evidence, Sheeran told the court that he had initially not been a big fan of Shape Of You as he felt it "stuck out like a sore thumb" on his third album, Divide, and was not overjoyed when he was told it would be a first single. Sheeran was in court to give evidence for a second day as part of a legal battle with Sami Chokri and Ross O'Donoghue, who accuse him of copying parts of their track Oh Why in his 2017 hit Shape Of You. Ed Sheeran has told the High Court he is there to "clear my name" and denied starting legal action to intimidate two songwriters who allege he has ripped off part of their work. Sheeran has spent two days in the witness box at the High Court. The singer-songwriter and two co-writers are accused of copying parts of Oh Why, a track written by Sami Chokri and Ross O'Donoghue, for his 2017 hit Shape Of You.

Ed Sheeran is accused of ripping off a hook in Shape of You. Here's ... (ABC News)

Sheeran says there's similarities between the two, but insists he hadn't heard Oh Why until long after his album was released.

In his witness statement, Sheeran said he had wanted to reference the TLC song No Scrubs in Shape of You and he attempted to clear it, but then the relevant part of the song was changed. According to the BBC, Sheeran could be heard on a voice memo saying it was "a bit close to the bone" and needed to be changed. He said he didn't know of Sami Switch at the time and hadn't heard the song before he was accused of ripping it off. Chokri and O'Donoghe's legal team argue it was "extremely likely" Sheeran heard the song before Shape of You was written in October 2016. But the repeated hook "oh why, oh why, oh why, oh" sounds similar to Sheeran's song. Chokri and O'Donoghue say it's "strikingly similar" to the "Oh Why" hook in their song.

Ed Sheeran tells UK court he wants to clear his name (RTE.ie)

Ed Sheeran said he is trying to "clear my name" and denied using litigation to "intimidate" other songwriters into abandoning a copyright dispute over his ...

That was how it originated." Mr Sutcliffe accused the singer of pursuing the case in a way that was "demonstrably unfair" to Mr Chokri and Mr O’Donoghue. Please review their details and accept them to load the content. Mr Sutcliffe suggested there was "no way" Sheeran could remember "every song that you’ve ever listened to" and asked if he could exclude the possibility he heard Oh Why and "forgot about it". "No," Sheeran said, adding: "I would say the melody and all of it was all of us three in a circle, bouncing back and forth. Mr Chokri, a grime artist who performs under the name Sami Switch, and Mr O’Donoghue, claim that a central "Oh I" hook in Shape Of You is "strikingly similar" to an "Oh Why" refrain in their own composition.

Ed Sheeran tells court he is trying to 'clear my name' in copyright case (thejournal.ie)

The singer insisted he is “a songwriter, I write songs, that's it,” as he faced questions over the creation of hit 2017 hit Shape Of You.

That was how it originated.” Sutcliffe accused the singer of pursuing the case in a way that was “demonstrably unfair” to Chokri and O’Donoghue. Sutcliffe suggested there was “no way” Sheeran could remember “every song that you’ve ever listened to” and asked if he could exclude the possibility he heard Oh Why and “forgot about it”. The singer previously denied he was “talent spotting” and “plugged in” to the UK music scene in 2015, when Chokri was making a return after a two-year absence. Chokri, a grime artist who performs under the name Sami Switch, and O’Donoghue, claim that a central “Oh I” hook in Shape Of You is “strikingly similar” to an “Oh Why” refrain in their own composition. In his written evidence, the singer, who admitted in court he “can’t read music”, said the use of “minor pentatonic pattern” was “very common” and used in his song I See Fire and by Nina Simone.