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cover of episode Thinking Out Loud: What Ed Sheeran’s copyright trial means for the music industry

Thinking Out Loud: What Ed Sheeran’s copyright trial means for the music industry

2025/6/18
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What in the World

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Amy Wodge
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Mark Savage
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Mark Savage: 我认为版权是指复制作品的权利,原创者拥有这些权利,他人需经授权才能复制。Ed Sheeran的歌曲Thinking Out Loud被指控抄袭Marvin Gaye的Let's Get It On,两首歌的和弦结构和节奏相似。Ed Sheeran的律师辩称这些和弦非常常见,不能被版权保护,否则会瓦解整个音乐产业。法院最终认同了这一观点,认为歌曲的基本构成要素不具有版权。证明版权侵权非常困难,需要达到很高的标准,例如,被指控抄袭的艺术家必须接触过被指控抄袭的歌曲。音乐行业一直存在版权诉讼,因为音乐能带来金钱。采样是指从别人的音乐中提取片段并将其融入到自己的歌曲中,现在需要获得许可并注明出处。人们有时会无意识地抄袭音乐,或者潜意识吸收音乐,这可能会成为创作灵感。Ed Sheeran认为这些和弦在音乐中被反复使用,希望这能解放艺术家。 Amy Wodge: Thinking Out Loud这首歌改变了我的生活,但版权诉讼让我感到恐惧,如果败诉,我可能会失去一切。这不仅是经济上的威胁,也是对歌曲创作和作曲家群体的生存威胁。大家都关注着这个案件,如果他们胜诉,会对整个音乐创作领域造成巨大的问题,我感到了巨大的责任。

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Chapters
Copyright is the right to copy existing work; in music, it protects original compositions. The case of Ed Sheeran's "Thinking Out Loud" exemplifies copyright complexities.
  • Copyright protects original works from unauthorized copying.
  • The owner of the copyright holds exclusive rights to reproduce and distribute the work.

Shownotes Transcript

Ed Sheeran’s long-running copyright battle over his hit Thinking Out Loud is finally over. That’s after the US Supreme Court rejected an appeal to revive the copyright trial. It all started back in 2016 when Sheeran and his co-writer Amy Wadge were sued for allegedly copying Marvin Gaye’s 1973 classic Let’s Get It On. Sheeran, whose subsequent hits include Azizam and Shape of You, ended up winning that case, with the judge saying that lots of songs share similar elements and that Gaye’s chord progressions couldn’t be copyrighted. But the family of Ed Townsend, who co-wrote the song with Gaye, appealed the case, and it dragged on for nearly ten years.

BBC music correspondent Mark Savage breaks down the case and gives a quick rundown of how copyright law works in music. He also discusses other famous plagiarism allegations and the rules around sampling music to create new songs.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: William Lee Adams, Emilia Jansson, Benita Barden Editor: Verity Wilde