Ariana Grande Hit With Copyright Suit Over ‘7 Rings’
Ariana Grande was sued on Thursday by a hip-hop artist who claims she ripped off the chorus of his song for her hit “7 Rings.”
Josh Stone, who performs as DOT, wrote and recorded “You Need I Got It” in 2017. He alleges that he took the song to music industry executives, including producer Tommy Brown, who has worked extensively with Grande.
The suit accuses Brown of lifting key elements of Stone’s song for Grande’s “7 Rings.” Grande’s song includes the repeating line: “I Want It, I Got It. I Want It, I Got It.” While Stone’s song has the refrain: “You Need It, I Got It. You Want It, I Got It.”
The suit, filed in New York federal court by attorney Tamir Young, alleges that two forensic musicologists have analyzed the choruses of each song and found the rhythm and notes to be substantially similar as well.
“Literally, every single one of the 39 respective notes of ‘7 Rings’ is identical with the 39 notes of ‘I Got It’ from a metrical placement perspective,” the suit alleges. “Said another way, the rhythm and placement of the notes and lyrics are identical.”
According to the suit, “7 Rings” has already netted more than $10 million in revenue. Grande is set to perform at the Grammy Awards next week, and is up for five awards, including two for “7 Rings.”
The suit names Universal Music Corp. along with many other defendants.
Grande’s label did not immediately respond to Variety‘s request for comment.
Music copyright suits have become a hot-button issue in the industry since the 2015 “Blurred Lines” verdict. Last year, a jury found that Katy Perry had stolen a riff from Flame, a little-known Christian rapper.
Case 1:20-cv-00441 Document 1 Filed 01/16/20 Page 1 of 17 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK _____________________________________________ Josh Stone, COMPLAINT Plaintiff, -against- File No. 20-cv-441 Ariana Grande, Thomas Lee Brown, Taylor Monet Parks, Kimberly Anne Krysiuk, Victoria Monet McCants, Charles Michael Anderson, Michael David Foster, Njomza Vitia, BMG Rights Management US LLC, Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp., Kobalt Songs Music Publishing, The Royalty Network Inc., Universal Music Corporation, Concord Music Group, Inc. Demand for Jury Trial Defendants. _____________________________________________ Plaintiff, by and through his attorneys, STUDIN YOUNG PC, alleges as follows: PRELIMINARY STATEMENT 1. Ariana Grande is a world-famous singer/songwriter. Her recent hit song “7 RINGS,” released on January 18, 2019, is a worldwide juggernaut that reached #1 on weekly song charts in 23 countries during 2019, and 7 RINGS was recently nominated for multiple Grammy Awards including “Record of the Year.” 2. By all accounts, 7 RINGS is a huge commercial success and has generated (and continues to generate) millions of dollars. Indeed, 7 RINGS broke records for the most streams in 24 hours on Spotify and its official video has been viewed over 642 million times just on YouTube alone. 3. And by every method of analysis, 7 RINGS is a forgery – plagiarized from Plaintiff Josh Stone who wrote, recorded and published the nearly identical original work “You Need It, I Got It” (hereafter, “I GOT IT”) approximately two years earlier.
Article via Variety