THE BIG STORY: Taylor Says She Didn’t Copy ‘Shake It Off’ Lyrics
That long-running lawsuit over the lyrics to “Shake It Off” is heating back up, and Taylor Swift – not her legal team, but Taylor herself – has plenty to say about it.
Filed way back in 2017, the case claims that Swift’s chart-topping 2014 bop infringed the copyright to “Playas Gon’ Play,” a track released in 2001 by the group 3LW. Songwriters Sean Hall and Nathan Butler say Swift copied their lyrics – “playas, they gonna play” and “haters, they gonna hate” – when she wrote her line “the players gonna play, play, play, play, play and the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate.”
With her lawyers seeking once again to have the case tossed out, the singer filed her own sworn declaration this week – stating in no uncertain terms that “the lyrics to Shake It Off were written entirely by me” and that she’d “never heard” the song she’s accused of copying.
At times, the filing got very specific. Had Taylor heard “Playas Gon’ Play” when it aired on MTV’s then-ubiquitous Total Request Live in 2001? Not possible, she suggested, because growing up she “listened to country music almost exclusively” and “my parents limited what I could watch and listen to, and did not permit me to watch TRL until I was about 13 years old.”
For Swifties, the declaration will no doubt be a tantalizing look into the mind of the music superstar. Explaining the lyrics, Swift said: “I drew partly on experiences in my life and, in particular, unrelenting public scrutiny of my personal life, ‘clickbait’ reporting, public manipulation, and other forms of negative personal criticism which I learned I just needed to shake off and focus on my music.”
She also (obviously) amplified and supported her lawyers’ primary argument – that “playas, they gonna play” and “haters, they gonna hate” are simply too simple and too commonplace to sue over.
“I recall hearing phrases about players play and haters hate stated together by other children while attending school in Wyomissing Hills, and in high school in Hendersonville,” Swift wrote. “These phrases were akin to other commonly used sayings like ‘don’t hate the playa, hate the game,’ ‘take a chill pill,’ and ‘say it, don’t spray it.’”
To read everything Taylor had to say, go read the entire filing over at Billboard.
If this week’s motions aren’t successful (her previous efforts to end the case have not been) a jury trial is likely to be scheduled for sometime next year. Will Swift herself take the witness stand to talk about writing her song? Stay tuned.
Other top stories…
$23M YOUTUBE ROYALTIES FRAUD – In a fascinating new feature out today, Billboard’s Kristin Robinson tells the inside story of a brazen (but surprisingly simple) scheme that saw two men steal millions in YouTube royalties from artists like Daddy Yankee, exposing the complexities of monetizing music in a vast online world filled with bad actors.
CARDI’S TATTOO TRIAL DELAYED – A federal judge postponed a planned trial (scheduled to start last week) in a lawsuit that accuses Cardi B of “humiliating” a California man by photoshopping an image of his back tattoo onto the sexually provocative cover of her 2016 debut mixtape “Gangsta Bitch Music Vol. 1.” The star herself was set to take the stand, but the case was punted to October at the last minute because Cardi’s lawyer developed a “serious illness.”
LOLLAPALOOZA GUARD CHARGED FOR FAKE SHOOTING THREAT – A security guard at Lollapalooza was arrested for allegedly sending a fake threat of a mass shooting to her supervisor because she “wanted to leave work early.” The text – “Mass shooting at 4pm location Lollapalooza. We have 150 targets” – was quickly traced by FBI investigators to Janya Williams, 18, and does not appear to have disrupted the festival. Williams faces a single charge of falsely making a terrorist threat.
FETTY WAP ARRESTED OVER FACETIME DEATH THREATS – A federal judge revoked bond for Fetty Wap (currently awaiting trial on federal drug charges) after video surfaced of a FaceTime call in which the “Trap Queen” rapper pointed a gun, threatening to kill someone, and called someone else a “rat.” The rapper was charged last year with participating in “a multimillion-dollar bicoastal drug distribution organization” that allegedly transported more than 100 kilograms of heroin, fentanyl and cocaine from California to buyers on Long Island. If convicted, he faces a lifetime prison sentence.
YOUTUBE CAN’T DITCH IP CLASS ACTION – YouTube lost a motion to dismiss a proposed class action that claims the platform enables piracy by providing ContentID only to big record labels and movie studios, leaving smaller rights holders to use “vastly inferior” methods of policing their copyrights. The Google-owned video giant claimed the case suffers from a “potpourri” of flaws, but a judge said the arguments were “unavailing” and “not well taken.”
KANYE SPLITS WITH LATEST DIVORCE LAWYER – Kanye West formally parted ways with yet another attorney in his divorce battle with ex-wife Kim Kardashian, leaving him lawyer-less with a new December trial date fast approaching. In quitting the case, lawyer Samantha Spector (a well-known Hollywood divorce lawyer) cited an “an irreconcilable breakdown” in the relationship with the rapper. It’s unclear if West has another lawyer lined up, but he’s facing a September deadline to meet key filing requirements and a Dec. 14 trial on any disputed issues.
TRUMP HOTEL SUED OVER CLASSIC ROCK FEST – A concert promoter filed a fraud and breach of contract lawsuit against Trump International Beach Resort in Miami, over allegations that the hotel backed out of a classic rock event after months of promises to host it. 4U Promotions Inc., which operates Decades of Rock & Roll Cruises, said the hotel repeatedly offered assurances that they had a deal in place to host the event in October, only to renege on the agreement last month.
GOOGLE V. SONOS PATENT WAR CONTINUES – Google launched two new patent infringement lawsuits against Sonos in their ongoing legal war over speaker technology, claiming the smaller company stole its core “magic” from Google innovations. The new cases came amid two-and-a-half years of bitter litigation between the two tech firms, which previously partnered on projects before their falling out. Sonos quickly called the new cases “an intimidation tactic designed to retaliate against Sonos for speaking out against Google’s monopolistic practices.” Google fired back that “we prefer innovation to litigation but their actions leave us no choice but to defend our technology.”
R. KELLY JURY HIDDEN DUE TO HARASSMENT RISK – A federal judge ruled that R. Kelly’s looming trial in Chicago on child pornography charges will be decided by a “confidential jury,” citing the risk of harassment by the disgraced singer’s fans. Kelly’s lawyers argued the special treatment might bias jurors against the singer, but the judge said there was good reason to keep their identities out of the public record: “There is a rather large group of people who feel quite strongly about Mr. Kelly and are quite active in expressing their disagreement with his treatment.”
The best of the rest…
-The public feud involving Kelis and Beyoncé over interpolations on Renaissance provides a cautionary tale for emerging artists about the danger of signing away their music rights to songs on which they contribute, legal experts say. (Bloomberg Law)
-The man who allegedly shot Lady Gaga’s dog walker and stole her two of her French bulldogs was recaptured after he was accidentally released from jail in April as a result of “clerical error.” The arrest came the same day another suspect was sentenced to four years in prison after pleading guilty to his role in the incident. (Rolling Stone)
-Mercury Insurance Co. filed a lawsuit claiming it has a right to recover damages from Migos rapper Offset over a car accident involving the musician in 2020. The insurer claims that the vehicle in which the rapper was riding was “negligently operated,” entitling the company to $27,000 in damages. (Law360)
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