Christian Rappers Sue Katy Perry Over 'Dark Horse' Katy Perry performs onstage during "The Prismatic World Tour" at the Verizon Center on June 24, 2014, in Washington, D.C. _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); All rights reserved. Flame’s “Joyful Noise” is analyzed, and the judge considers the elements identified by his musicologist Todd Decker. “It is undisputed in this case, even viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to plaintiffs, that the signature elements of the 8-note ostinato in ‘Joyful Noise’… is not a particularly unique or rare combination, even in its deployment as an ostinato: prior compositions, including prior works composed by the parties, as well as what all agree is a separate non-infringing ostinato in ‘Dark Horse,’ all contain similar elements,” states the judge’s opinion (read here). Katy also testified during the seven-day trial that none of the song’s creators had heard the song nor did they listen to Christian music. Email Or Call (888) 847-9869. As we reported ... Katy showed up to court last week wearing a mint-colored suit and took the stand, claiming she never heard the song "Joyful Noise" before the filing of the lawsuit. $( this ).css( position ); (It’s nerdy, but that ‘Axis of Awesome’ video from a decade ago very succinctly demonstrates how similar basically every pop song is.). That time, anyway. Take a listen to them both below and compare for yourself. }); However, prior to Katy becoming a household name, she was a Christian singer signed to Red Hills Records under her real name, Katy Hudson. Can you really try to lay claim to something that’s supposed to be ubiquitous and influential? Throughout the trial, Flame accused Katy and her team of copying the beat of “Joyful Noise.” From the very beginning of the tune, it seems the jury heard the similarity between both songs. MUSIC, "Stop using that f**king pain to make it OK to say some bullsh** on your record and get nominated for a Grammy...". Producer Max Martin also took home a Grammy for Producer of the Year, Non Classical, for his work on “Dark Horse.”. She also released a gospel album before transforming into the pop princess we know today. On Monday, July 29th, a Los Angeles jury has found Katy Perry guilty of copyright infringement after it was decided that the beat of her 2013 hit song "Dark Horse"  was too similar to that of Christian rapper Flame’s song, “Joyful Noise.". He says Katy jacked the underlying beat ... but she called BS, claiming there are NO meaningful similarities. at: "center top", Katy told the jury she initially heard the beats from Dr. Luke while they were drinking wine in Santa Barbara, and claimed she wrote "Dark Horse" in only 4 hours. According to Variety, Katy wasn't present during the verdict's decision, which came five years after Flame and his two co-authors filed their lawsuit. But “I Said Hi” and “Bad Day” are very different songs made by very different artists that could never be mistaken for one another — the former an angsty pop-rock track made in 2018, and the latter a Canadian easy-listening hit from a decade prior. STREAM EXCLUSIVE ORIGINALS, TYLER PERRY AND CLASSIC HITS, Madea’s Farewell The Play - Virtual Museum. $(".head-carousel").tooltip({ Katy Perry just took an L in court ... a jury ruled her song "Dark Horse" stole heavily from a gospel song that came out 5 years earlier. Here’s the comparison of Joyful Noise and Dark Horse. © 2020 BET Interactive, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Black Entertainment Television LLC. The whole scenario has the internet drawing up comparisons, sheet notes included, between the two songs and has kicked off a battle over whether or not Katy actually copied Gray’s beats. } Gray, who released the song under the stage name Flame, launched a lawsuit against Katy back in 2014 alongside his two co-writers. While one person might call that copying, another could postulate that shared ideas and styles are the literal foundation of artistic practise. The beat in the latter’s opening moments sounds a little like the drop in the former — but “Joyful Noise” is noticeably faster than “Dark Horse.” It’s also in an entirely different key, and as soon as Flame begins to rap, the song’s electric guitar solos and overtly religious lyrics are impossible to recognize as even vaguely being related to “Dark Horse.” Gray and co. had musicologist Todd Decker testify as an expert witness during the trial, who determined that Perry and her team had copied their song’s beat; the musicologist that Perry and her team put forward, however, determined that all the supposedly copied elements of “Dark Horse” were simply part of pop and trap music. Thanks to a mashup video of the songs on YouTube, you can get an idea of what the jury listened to during the trial. _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-1853049-1']); The “Dark Horse” lawsuit is the latest in a spate of lawsuits against this decade’s most prominent pop stars. She also claimed she had never heard of Gray before the lawsuit. Marcus' attorney claimed at the time that the song had a wide enough appeal to have reached Katy and her producers' ears. var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); The “Dark Horse” lawsuit is the latest in a spate of lawsuits against this decade’s most prominent pop stars. A jury initially sided with Flame and a judge awarded $2.8 million in damages, but Katy’s legal team appealed and she won. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Listen to The FADER's weekly playlist of songs you need in your life. FILE - This April 11, 2019 file photo shows Katy Perry at the 10th annual DVF Awards at the Brooklyn Museum in New York. Snyder then looks at whether Flame can claim any protection in the combination of unprotected elements. Katy beat out nuns for a convent and now she beat out a Christian rapper for copyright. Monday's verdict is the latest step in a lengthy legal battle that started back in July 2014, when Katy was sued by the Christian rapper, Flame -- he claimed her 2013 hit song "Dark Horse" is a complete rip-off of his Grammy-nominated gospel song, "Joyful Noise.". In closing statements, Perry’s lawyer argued that “[Grey and co. are] trying to own basic building blocks of music, the alphabet of music that should be available to everyone,” and it’s troubling that which basic rhythms and melodies songwriters can and can’t use is now up for debate. Samantha Knowles Draws Attention to Black Hair Discrimination, Fans Will Not Be Happy About This Male R&B Singer Calling Out Beyoncé, SZA And Cardi B, Hip-Hop Reacts To The Tragic Death Of Leah LaBelle, Michelle Obama Hilariously Breaks Down Why Melania Trump's Inauguration Gift Exchange Appeared So Awkward, This 13-Year-Old Cheerleader Serving Some Serious Sassy Face Is Taking Over Twitter As Everyone's New Favorite Meme, Man Films Racist Old Navy Encounter Where Store Managers Accused Him Of Stealing The Jacket He Wore To The Store, Why Kobe Bryant’s Daughters Were Appointed New Guardians, After Joseline Hernandez Breaks Down Over Losing Custody, Stevie J Issues Petty Response, Pregnant Ciara And Her Family Crush 'Something New' Choreography In Adorable Tik Tok Video, Get Exclusive Tyler Perry Content and More With BET+, It's a Woman's World in American Gangster: Trap Queens, Saving Our Selves: A BET COVID-19 Relief Effort Special. pay $5.3 million to Marvin Gaye’s estate over similarities between “Blurred Lines” and Gaye’s “Got To Give It Up”; Ed Sheeran was sued by Gaye’s estate over similarities between “Thinking Out Loud” and “Let’s Get It On,” while Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars were taken to court by two separate bands who alleged “Uptown Funk” copied them. It’s undeniable that some will herald this as a win for songwriters everywhere, arguing that Flame, Ojukwu, and Lambert are fighting the good fight for the little guy. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, Download the TMZ App on the Apple App Store, Download the TMZ App on the Google Play Store. Here are all the artists who posted tributes to the late R&B singer. Skip to main content. On Tuesday (July 30), a federal court in California sided with Christian rapper Marcus Gray, who asserted that Katy’s 2013 Juicy J-featuring "Dark Horse" single, which earned a Grammy nod, copied his 2009 gospel hip-hop song "Joyful Noise." After finding Katy and her team liable, the case will now go to a penalty phase on July 30. According to the suit ... Flame claims Perry also destroyed his reputation in Christian music circles because he's now associated with the anti-Christian witchcraft and imagery that's present in her "Dark Horse" music vid. Throughout the trial, Flame accused Katy and her team of copying the beat of “Joyful Noise.” From the very beginning of the tune, it seems the jury heard the similarity between both songs. Katy Perry’s ‘Dark Horse’ Ripped Off This Christian Hip-Hop Song, Jury Says. In the past few years, we’ve seen Robin Thicke, Pharrell and T.I. Katy Perry loses copyright lawsuit over "Dark Horse" as jury rules song is a copyright infringement. Moreso, pop and hip-hop are genres built on the transference of creativity between artists, scenes, and subcultures; certain melodies, rhythms, and styles reappear simply because music tends to inspire other music. Earlier this week, a jury decided that Katy Perry’s chart-topping 2013 Juicy J collaboration “Dark Horse” had copied, either knowingly or unknowingly, a 2008 Christian rap track titled “Joyful Noise.” The jury will now decide how much money Perry and her co-writers — Sarah Hudson, Max Martin, Dr. Luke, Cirkut, and Juicy J — owe Marcus Gray, the rapper who, under the name Flame, released “Joyful Noise” along with co-writers Chike Ojukwu and Emanuel Lambert. Thought nobody would notice. Dark Horse compared to Joyful Noise: https://t.co/Qp0H068zh2, Katy Perry's "Dark Horse" is undergoing an infringement trial against a Christian rapper named Flame. (function() { The deeper problem is that what constitutes “copying” depends on the person. } 'https://ssl' : 'http://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; “Because the sole musical phrase that plaintiffs claim infringement upon is not protectable expression, the extrinsic test is not satisfied, and plaintiffs’ infringement claim — even with the evidence construed in plaintiffs’ favor — fails as a matter of law,” continues the decision. Trump's worst nightmare. my: "center bottom-20", Here the jury will ultimately decide what Katy and her team will pay Marcus Gray aka Flame in damages for copyright infringement. The Hollywood Reporter says that the whole music industry saw their money flash before their eyes when Katy got hit with a $2.8 million judgement for having a song that sounded like another song. They all thought, “Who’s next! Katy Perry's "Dark Horse" is undergoing an infringement trial against a Christian rapper named Flame. “They’re trying to own basic building blocks of music, the alphabet of music that should be available to everyone,” Perry’s lawyer Christine Lepera said. Not only was Katy found guilty of "stealing" the song, but so was her producer, Capitol Records, and rapper Juicy J, who was featured on the track. "Dark Horse" has also accrued close to 3 billion views on YouTube and has won Katy the Song of the Year award at the American Music Awards and the Best Female Video award at MTV’s Video Music Awards. Given the success of “Dark Horse,” Katy could be hashing out a lot of money on her end. A jury initially sided with Flame and a judge awarded $2.8 million in … Flame's music label uploaded the music video to YouTube way back in 2008, and it's since racked up millions of views. Katy was probably like, “Um, I’ve killed a nun; I’m not about to get screwed by some Christian rapper.”. It’s not as simple and definitive as your classmate leaning over and stealing test answers — pop music, by design, is supposed to be disseminated through culture as widely and deeply as possible. }); Waiting for your permission to load the comments. var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; Katy Perry has won her appeal in the copyright lawsuit over her song Dark Horse. Got A Tip? Originally, jurors found that the two tracks sounded similar enough that Katy and company (Lukasz “Dr.

1970 Dodge Charger Kit Car, Who Did The Singing In I'll Cry Tomorrow, Hotels In Rye, Ny, Class 1 Licence, I'm Your Empress Of Review, Iran Air News, Nyc Thunderstorm,