Does This Song Sound Familiar? đ¸
When it comes to infringement issues I tend to side with the writer who thinks another song sounds like hers, but⌠I AM interested in other opinions especially because more than half of my community feels that all the recent pesky lawsuits infringe on our creativity.
That saidâŚa few months ago a friend sent me a link to a song that had âa bitâ in it that sounded like my (and Meredith Brooksâ) song âBitch.â Itâs called âLucky,â by Choker. You can hear the part Iâm talking about if you go here and FF to 1:28.
I dig his vibe. Choker has been described as a most underrated rising artist. Cool. Following.
Anyway, I thoughtâŚâyeah, I hear it. Itâs not a sophisticated string of notes but perhaps it is a recognizable melodic shape from a pretty iconic song.â Let me just say I donât think borrowing from another song means youâre a bad person. Weâre all influenced by everything that came before us. Robin Thick. Ed Sheeran. Katy Perry. Even George Harrison!
Now, you may think the bit in âLuckyâ is too insignificant to pursue. ButâŚbear with me.
I sent the song to Meredith and she agreed â she heard the similarity. I sent it to some fair-minded friends who have nothing to gain from saying they heard it too andâŚ.they heard it too.
So I brought it to the attention of my publisher who consulted Lastrada, an unbiased arbitration service that can put two compositions through an algorithmic process and determine if a copyright share is warranted. And if so, how much it should be. Their recommendation was that âBitchâ should receive between 15-20% of âLucky.â A little high for me but the point is an unbiased arbitrator heard it too.
SoâŚmy lawyer sent a friendly email to Chokerâs publisher. They âdidnât hear itâ and suggested I hire a musicologist. Thatâs code forâŚgo spend the money and prove it.
ââŚbesides,â they continuedâŚâthereâs pre-existing material that has the same melodic shape as the bit in question.â (In infringement speak thatâs called âprior art.â Iâm actually thankful for prior art because years ago I received an infringement letter and the claim was ultimately dismissed because of it.)
Ok. Maybe there is some prior art out there for the bit. But then why did songwriter Justin Tranter and Bebe Rexha come to ME when they realized âIâm A Messâ was akin to âBitch?â We sorted it out before the release. It was fair and painless. Subsequently, Justin and Bebe successfully pursued Tate McRaeâs hooky ditty âStupid,â (FF to :42) for the SAME STRING OF NOTES! And because âStupidâ settled with âMess,â and âMessâ had settled with âBitch,â âBitchâ wound up sharing in âStupid.âđłđłđłIn my opinion âLuckyâ bares more resemblance to âBitchâ than âMess.â
But, thereâs more: Chokerâs lawyer said his artist had never heard âBitch.â Seriously? Does he live on Mars? Itâs one thing if he doesnât agree with my claim but he doesnât have to insult me.
I wasnât that insulted. I just thought it was funny. But I guess it could be embarrassing for a guy to admit he borrowed from a female empowerment anthem. (I too, was embarrassed when I realized I had ripped off âBig Bottomâ from Spinal Tap, but I donât mind telling you about it cuz itâs hilarious.) Anyway, his lawyer prolly told him to say that. This is business!
SoâŚdid I want to go down the rabbit hole? Thereâd be attorneyâs fees and costly musicologist consultations.
Letâs do the digital math. At the time âLuckyâ had 7 million streams. That translates to about $35,000 in streaming income; $33K of which would go to the master owner (or label) and about $1400 to the publishers and songwriters. (You read that right!) SoâŚhalf of that (the songwritersâ share) would make it to Mer and I but if we only claimed 20%, weâd be looking at $140. Split between us = $70. Need I say more? It doesnât seem worth the trouble, does it?
(Sidebar: Pre-digital, a song that was on an album which sold 7 million copies would earn a songwriter $63,000 in mechanical royalties alone. But thatâs another blog.)
And then thereâs this: If Choker is a rising star, and âLuckyâ gets licensed for a film we could all benefit from a nutritious usage. Sync economics are a totally different equation.
So what did I decide to do?
Well, we were in the beginning of the pandemic when âLuckyâ was brought to my attention. Aside from the economic impracticalities of bringing the suit to fruition (and I do believe Iâd win), I had to ask myself if I wanted to entertain allowing un-needed stress into my stay-at-home zen. And I really didnât. So I let it go.
Maybe it has something to do with my covid-induced daily yoga regimen filling me with inner peace and gratitude during these UNCERTAIN TIMES. Let the rising star rise and my zen flourish. Hopefully some day someone will borrow from Choker and heâll give them a pass. I think itâs called Karma.
Choker might wonder what happened to me â why I went away so fast. Now he knows. (He also knows he knows my song đĄ.) Oh and also â this blog will prolly get him a bunch more streams. And followers. So what do you think about that, Choker?
Youâre welcome.
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Check out my new version of BitchâŚ.âBitch 2.0â
My full album is dropping next week. Pre-Save it HERE!!!
Thanks for reading, my friends. For more fun stories about how my songs came to be get a copy of âConfessions of a Serial Songwriter.â If you'd like to receive my blog via email, please click here. Follow me on Twitter and Insta. Visit my Serial Songwriter Facebook Page. Stay Safe! âŽď¸
Oh, and one more thing!