Pop star Katy Perry is facing a multi-million dollar payout after a jury found her 2013 hit Dark Horse had been copied from a Christian rap song.
The singer-songwriter, 34, denied lifting beats and notes from the 2009 gospel hit Joyful Noise, arguing the claim by rappers Flame and Da’ Truth and beats creator Chike Ojukwu was an attempt to “own basic building blocks of music”.
But a Los Angeles court today found Perry and co-creators of the song, as well as four corporations including Capitol Records, all liable for copyright infringement.
The jury will now consider how much money Perry and her co-defendants must pay to the creators of Joyful Noise.
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Today’s ruling follows on from last year’s high-profile court defeat for singers Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams, who were ordered to pay almost $5 million (£4 million) to the family of Marvin Gaye.
The pair were accused of copying their smash-hit Blurred Lines from Gaye’s 1977 track Got To Give It Up, and lost a long-running copyright infringement battle.
Perry, pictured arriving at court, defended the way Dark Horse was created during the trial.
She drew laughter after suggesting she could “perform it for you live” when technical difficulties prevented playback of the song and told the jury it had been written in four hours in a music studio in her Santa Barbara hometown.
She denied co-writers on Dark Horse, Dr Luke and producer Cirkut, had lifted the origins of the track from the internet and said she was drawn to the beat because of “the kind of dark feeling” it inspired.
It was a “moody metaphor like the Trojan horse and the power of a woman and not to cross a woman because that karma is not good for you”, she added. The case focused on the notes and beats of the song rather than the lyrics, leading some watching the trial to believe Perry would not be found liable.
But in a surprise ruling, the jury decided all the creators, including rapper Juicy J who only wrote the rap for the song, should be involved in the payout.
Perry’s lawyer, Christine Lepera, had argued that a ruling against her would leave many singers and songwriters liable to copyright claims in the future.
“They’re trying to own basic building blocks of music, the alphabet of music that should be available to everyone,” she said. Perry was not present when the verdict was delivered.
The post Katy Perry Facing Multi-Million Dollar Payout appeared first on Independent Newspapers Nigeria.
Source: Independent
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