Marvin Gaye Walked So Ed SheeRAN (allegedly)

+ A bicycle allowance in Belgium 🚲, banana artwork gobbled 🍌, & is it spelt chilli or chili? 🌶

Not much to fill you in on from yesterday except I watched the new episode of Succession (hell yeah), last week’s episode of Ted Lasso (I cried at TWO points) and I had this incredible thought that I don’t think anyone else has had before:

Also, it’s Met Gala Monday (Tuesday for me) and I kinda can’t wait for all the takes from the TikTok stylists that make this day their superbowl (I’m not being sarcastic, I really do like it.)

• Marvin Gaye Walked So Ed SheeRAN (allegedly)

• HUUUUGE PODCAST REC FOR ANYONE WHO LOVES A GOSSIP

• Is it spelt chili or chilli?

• 🗺Around the world🗺

  • All Belgians entitled to bicycle allowance for commute

  • 'MasterChef' 'Australia' Judge Jock Zonfrillo Dead at 46

  • France protests: More than 100 police hurt in May Day demonstrations

  • Maurizio Cattelan: Banana artwork eaten by Seoul museum visitor

Marvin Gaye Walked So Ed SheeRAN (allegedly)

This week in real life Jury Duty (it’s actually not ok that this is the lens I see court cases through now), Ed Sheeran is in court for a copyright infringement trial involving a song that I never want to hear at another wedding ever again: ‘Thinking Out Loud.’

The case accuses Ed Sheeran of copying Marvin Gaye’s ‘Let’s get it on,’ and was brought by the heirs of Ed Townsend (who co-wrote the song with Gaye.)

The argument?

“The defendants copied the heart of ‘Let’s’ and repeated it continuously throughout ‘Thinking,‘” attorneys for the Townsend heirs wrote in their complaint. “The melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic compositions in ‘Thinking’ are not the product of independent creation.”

Apparently, the ‘smoking gun’ in this case is that Ed once played a live mashup of the two songs in 2014, which the plaintiffs say ‘amounted to a confession.’ Not that he needs to explain this to us normies (most of us have watched Glee enough times to understand how a mashup works) but because he’s in literal court, Eds explanashe for the mashup was that it happened because most pop songs use similar chords:

"I feel like you don't want me to answer because you know that what I'm going to say is actually going to make quite a lot of sense," he said.

"You could go from Let it Be to No Woman, No Cry and switch back," Sheeran continued under oath, referring to the Beatles and Bob Marley classics.

“If I’d done what you’re accusing me of doing, I’d be an idiot to stand on stage in front of 20,000 people and do that,” the musician said, adding that he has done similar mash-ups with other pop songs. “It is my belief that most pop songs are built on building blocks that have been freely available for hundreds of years.”

Ed even brought his guitar into the courtroom and played his song to demonstrate the differences (and apparently cringed as he was asked to play it in a minor key.)

The stupidest part of this trial so far for me is that he was asked about lyrics he wrote in ‘Take It Back’ (another song of his) where he sings "plagiarism is hidden." We’ve talked a few times about how your lyrics really shouldn’t be used as evidence against you in court (rappers face this in a HUGE way), and this just feels like a massive stretch.

This also isn’t the first time that Ed has been taken to court for a claim like this (I feel like anyone with hits as big as him will have people finding similarities between their work and his) but to this, he’s said he feels like “claims like this are way too common now and have become a culture where a claim is made with the idea that a settlement will be cheaper than taking it to court, even if there’s no base for the claim.”

I’m inclined to agree with Ed here. We’ve talked about this a bunch over on Culture Vulture before, but I feel like with the rise of AI music, we’re going to be seeing a lot less of these ‘you-copied-me’ types of lawsuits because the world may be too tied up in ‘you-made-a-whole-song-using-my-voice’ type of lawsuits. Who’s to say what the lesser evil is?

This case doesn’t have an outcome yet, but I’ll naturally keep you in the loop!

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HUUUUGE PODCAST REC FOR ANYONE WHO LOVES A GOSSIP

This section is brought to you by our besties at Shameless 𓆩♡𓆪

Ok, so you already know how much we’re obsessed with the podcast Shameless - but have you heard about their other pod???? It’s called everybody has a secret, it’s hosted by Annabelle Lee (who produces Shameless) and it’s all about SPILLING SECRETS. Literally - every episode is about a different never-been-told secret. 

You all know me, and you know I fucking looooove chatting shit, so hearing stories from their listeners about infidelity, stealing, wild family dramas… it’s so up my alley, and I reckon it’s up yours too.

Season three is now dropping - with new episodes every Friday morning. And if you want my rec (I know you do) start with ‘the brother!!’ 

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Today’s mundane poll:

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🗺Around the world🗺

Belgium

All Belgians entitled to bicycle allowance for commute (The Brussels Times)

• As of the first of May, Belgian employees who regularly cycle to work are entitled to a bicycle compensation of €0.27 per kilometre of their commute - and this includes ebikes too!

Australia

'MasterChef' 'Australia' Judge Jock Zonfrillo Dead at 46 (People)

• “Jock Zonfrillo, host of MasterChef Australia, has died. He was 46 years old.

  According to the show's production company and network, the TV personality died in Melbourne, Australia on Monday, the day the season 15 series premiere was set to air. A cause of death has not yet been released by the Zonfrillo family, who confirmed the news to local outlets and in a statement on his Instagram.”

France

France protests: More than 100 police hurt in May Day demonstrations (BBC)

• “At least 108 police officers have been injured in clashes across France with protesters angry at pension reforms.”

Korea

Maurizio Cattelan: Banana artwork eaten by Seoul museum visitor (BBC)

• This story was low-hanging fruit (sorry.)

• “A South Korean art student ate a banana that was part of an installation by artist Maurizio Cattelan, saying he was "hungry" after skipping breakfast.”

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