To date, there have been numerous cases of theft in the music business. With hit songs ranging from the likes of Shakira, Katy Perry and even Bruno Mars being called out for alleged plagiarism, the list seems endless. It’s almost become a rite of passage for an artist to face flak over their music being something you’ve heard before, but outright copied? There’s a whole treasure trove of songs that fit that bill.

Where there’s a hit, a lawsuit is sure to follow. So here are five of the most recent additions to the list of musical plagiarisms and you’ll be surprised to know which musicians have made the cut:

Ed Sheeran made headlines this week for his court appearance in which he denied borrowing music without credit in the ongoing plagiarism case made against him. The song in question is Sheeran’s 2017 single ‘Shape of You’, which spent a staggering ​​14 weeks at number one across UK charts at the time. Fighting the copyright claim brought up by writers Sami Chokri and Ross O’Donoghue, Sheeran denied all allegations of lifting from their song ‘Oh Why’, released in 2015.

https://youtu.be/a3VDY6ttikM

Sheeran and his crew of co-writers for ‘Shape Of You’—Steven McCutcheon and John McDaid—began initial legal proceedings back in May 2018. They had asked the High Court to declare they had not infringed Chokri and O’Donoghue’s copyright. After this, the ‘Oh Why’ writers issued a counter claim for copyright infringement. The trial began last week and is expected to continue for the next three weeks.

According to the BBC, Sheeran himself self-identified as a “magpie,” someone “who lifts other people’s work without acknowledgment, pointing out that he has often shared credit with lesser-known artists.”

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Though she looks stunning decked out in Mugler, Dua Lipa’s music is the hot topic on everyone’s lips and not for good reason. She has recently found herself in a tight spot for her song ‘Levitating’ as she was slammed with a lawsuit for it over claims of composition infringement. The global smash hit spent a whopping 68 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100—which is no easy feat for any artist—but this has drawn the attention of one claimant by the name of Artikal Sound System (a Reggae band from South Florida) who state that Lipa’s song takes from their more obscure 2017 track, ‘Live Your Life’.

@jarredjermaine

The Reggae band Artikal Sound System is sueing Dua Lipa over “Levitating”, do you think this is a reach or not? #dualipa #levitating #music #lawsuit

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According to Variety, “the complaint includes little specific detail beyond claiming that the two tracks are so similar.” However, the lawsuit suggests that it’s “highly unlikely that ‘Levitating’ was created independently.”

@dellara

♬ original sound - dellara

Twice in four days… not exactly the record that any artist wants to set for themselves, is it? However, Lipa seems to have found herself in hot water yet again this week as another claim has been levied against ‘Levitating’, uh oh.

This time, the claimants irate over being copied are songwriters L. Russell Brown and Sandy Linzer. With this second, more detailed claim from 4 March stating that Lipa copied not one but two songs of the writers. First up, their 1979 song ‘Wiggle and Giggle All Night’, and second, their 1980 song ‘Don Diablo’. The two tracks date way back to the dancing disco era.

The pair assert that the opening melody to ‘Levitating’ was a “duplicate” to the melody of their own songs. On top of this, they claim there are some similarities in the rhythmic delivery in the openings of Lipa and their own verses, before the melodies later diverge. The duo’s attorneys also claim that the segment of the melody in question was a key component to Lipa’s wildly marvelled TikTok song and chart success. ‘Levitating’ currently has 1.2 million videos using it’s sound on TikTok but a big slice of that pie might’ve been chomped out of Brown and Linzer’s plate.

One thing that Taylor Swift just couldn’t shake off ironically—despite her now controversial song talking all about it—were the copyright suits that followed  the chart dominating phenomenon that was ‘Shake It Off’.

With an eye watering price tag of $49 million attached to the now dismissed lawsuit, this is another in a series of times Swift has dogged the copyright claim crusade on her music. Several outlets reported that R&B artist Jesse Graham tried to sue Swift multiple times over plagiarism accusations, but though he came out swinging none of the punches landed.

First reported in 2015 by Time, the million dollar figure came up when Graham claimed Swift plagiarised the lyrics to his 2013 song ‘Haters Gone Hate’. Swift’s ‘Shake it Off’ was released the following year. Complete Music Update notes that Graham was labelled “a vexatious litigant”—a term for those who constantly takes legal action without merit—by the judge who oversaw his fourth attempt to win the lawsuit.

Graham’s original lawsuit was dismissed shortly after it was filed and this one has been saddled with the same fate. Fourth time (and Ninth Circle appeal) wasn’t the charm, I guess.

March is already shaping up to be a witch hunt for singers who steal.

This time it’s double trouble for a duo. It seems that Normani has a ‘Wild Side’ indeed with the case brought against her and fellow artist Sam Smith for their collaboration ‘Dancing With A Stranger’. The 2019 hit has now received accusations of plagiarism in a lawsuit filed on 4 March at Los Angeles federal court, by songwriters Jordan Vincent, Rosco Banlaoi and Christopher Miranda.

The trio claim the hit copies elements from one of their 2017 songs and state both Smith and Normani’s song contains copyrighted components. ‘Dancing with a Stranger’ was a worldwide hit for the pair three years ago, earning a certified four-time platinum status in the US and that or higher in ten other countries. The duo’s first duet also nabbed them a Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) award, an iHeart Radio gong, nominations in Teen Choice categories and even a Brit.

The writers of the original track also uploaded their ‘Dancing With Strangers’ music video to Vincent’s YouTube channel and other sites accusing the video of the same issue. In documents obtained by Rolling Stone, the complaint lists that “the hook/chorus in both songs—the most significant part and artistic aspect of these works—contains the lyrics ‘dancing with a stranger’ being sung over a nearly identical melody and musical composition.”

“As a result of [the] defendants’ exploitation of [the] plaintiff’s song without permission, they obtained a massive international hit single which generated significant revenue and profits,” the lawsuit added.

Celebrity dating life consumes pop culture most of the time. We always seem to be obsessed with who is dating who and the drama behind the scenes. From marital affairs to the messy divorces that we can’t seem to turn away from—Kanye, we’re looking at you—the romantic lives of celebrities are something we just can’t get enough of. And now, thanks to The Sun, we’re discovering even more intimate details about the people we stan, their sex lives—or more accurately how good or bad they are in bed. That’s right, the star you have been crushing hard on—the one you’d try to pull if given the opportunity—might be crap in the sack.

Making headlines these past few months is Simon Leviev—otherwise known as the Tinder Swindler—who made his fame for conning multiple women out of tens of thousands of pounds. But now, it seems like he may not have robbed them financially but sexually too as an ex-lover is citing he was terrible in bed.

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Samantha Hales, who dated the con artist before his swindling days, told The Sun: “He must have really improved his game in the last ten years to get money out of these girls […] He couldn’t pull any strokes in the bedroom. He was a total flop. I had to show him the ropes.” 

One of the UK’s most famous comedians, Jack Whitehall is popular for his witty humour and good looks, which has led him to become fairly popular with the ladies. Dating stars like Gemma Chan and Hollywood actress Kate Beckinsale, Whitehall seems to have the ‘British Pete Davidson’ effect on the stars in the industry, but he might not be all that great in bed. Actually he admitted it himself…

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Not much of a freak in the sheets, Whitehall stated back in 2019 that, “I am very unadventurous in the bedroom. People go, ‘Ooh, Jack what do you like in the bedroom?’” Whitehall continued: “Just quick and quiet. Like I’m hiding from the Nazis. Sex with me is arriving late at the theatre and trying to find your seat […] Some shuffling, a bit of shushing, a pause and then from somewhere in the darkness just a whispered ‘Sorry’. And never an applause.”

Swathed in recent scandal surrounding his treatment and abuse of the Playboy bunnies, Hugh Hefner also makes the list of the worst celebs in bed ironically. Despite being the image of sex for years and creating a million-dollar industry around the activity, he wasn’t any good at it. According to one of his widows, Crystal Harris, most sexual experience with Hef was all too often “short-lived.” In spite of his vast viagra use, he reportedly could only manage a few minutes at a time according to Harris. Other details emerged that he would often never undress because he could never be bothered. Nothing gets you going more than that, right?

With his most recent tabasco fiasco that had him put hot sauce in his used condom to kill the sperm, Drake has been no stranger to a sex story in the papers. Unfortunately for you Certified Lover Boy fans, his performance in the bedroom (or lack thereof) has been well-documented and it’s not looking great. According to information gathered by The Talko, ex Cyn Santana stated that the Canadian musician was wildly “unimpressive” in bed and suggested he was completely selfish in the sack.

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The publication went on to claim that among the above, other rumours have circulated that imply he has “a small package, and prefers to be the recipient of plenty of backdoor action, according to exes, groupies and strippers alike.” Nothing has ever been confirmed and we’ve probably all seen examples of a salty ex, so who knows?

Bradley Cooper’s moves were put into question after the release of the film Silver Linings Playbook from his co-star Jennifer Lawrence. According to the actress he was a terrible kisser—well actually a very ‘wet’ kisser—a statement she made to him directly and one he disclosed on The Graham Norton Show. “After the second take she said, ‘You’re a wet kisser’. You don’t want to hear that. It was not a compliment.”

Supposedly it gets worse… The Richest, compiling its information on the actor from a number of sites including Celebitchy, detailed that Cooper is reportedly very boring in the bedroom. Apparently, he also tries to ramble on in French to the girl to seduce them—thinking it would be a turn-on for them. Maybe you better think twice before saying you want to jump his bones.😉