Dua Lipa has successfully fended off a copyright lawsuit accusing her of copying melodies from two older disco tracks for her hit single "Levitating," with a judge declaring the similarities too generic to warrant protection.
Dua Lipa Triumphs in Copyright Lawsuit Over "Levitating"
Dua Lipa Triumphs in Copyright Lawsuit Over "Levitating"
Major legal victory for Dua Lipa as a judge dismisses a lawsuit claiming she plagiarized her hit song.
In a significant ruling on Thursday, a US judge dismissed a lawsuit brought against Dua Lipa by songwriters L. Russell Brown and Sandy Linzer, who claimed Lipa's "Levitating" borrowed from their 1979 track "Wiggle and Giggle All Night" and the 1980 song "Don Diablo." The decision from Judge Katherine Polk Failla emphasized that the elements cited in the lawsuit were common and non-copyrightable, pointing to similar musical ideas used by renowned composers, including Mozart and the Bee Gees in "Stayin' Alive."
This isn't Dua Lipa's first encounter with plagiarism claims regarding "Levitating." She previously faced a lawsuit from the Florida reggae band Artikal Sound System, which asserted that her song's chorus resembled their 2015 track "Live Your Life." That case was dropped earlier this year after the court found insufficient evidence of access, a necessity in copyright allegations.
However, Lipa's legal troubles aren't over just yet; she is currently facing another lawsuit from Bosko Kante, a collaborator on "Levitating." Kante claims his vocal contributions used in remix versions of the track were exploited without consent, seeking damages exceeding $2 million along with a share of profits believed to reach $20 million.
The lawsuit dismissed by Judge Failla centered on claims that Lipa's opening melody mirrored that of Brown and Linzer's songs. Yet, the ruling highlighted that musical styles defined as "pop with a disco feel" and the associated functions like "entertainment and dancing" cannot be protected under copyright law. The timing of the ruling coincided with the fifth anniversary of "Levitating's" initial release on her acclaimed album "Future Nostalgia."
In response to the ruling, Brown and Linzer's attorneys expressed their intent to appeal, emphasizing their disagreement with the decision while the legal team for Dua Lipa has yet to make a statement to the press.
This isn't Dua Lipa's first encounter with plagiarism claims regarding "Levitating." She previously faced a lawsuit from the Florida reggae band Artikal Sound System, which asserted that her song's chorus resembled their 2015 track "Live Your Life." That case was dropped earlier this year after the court found insufficient evidence of access, a necessity in copyright allegations.
However, Lipa's legal troubles aren't over just yet; she is currently facing another lawsuit from Bosko Kante, a collaborator on "Levitating." Kante claims his vocal contributions used in remix versions of the track were exploited without consent, seeking damages exceeding $2 million along with a share of profits believed to reach $20 million.
The lawsuit dismissed by Judge Failla centered on claims that Lipa's opening melody mirrored that of Brown and Linzer's songs. Yet, the ruling highlighted that musical styles defined as "pop with a disco feel" and the associated functions like "entertainment and dancing" cannot be protected under copyright law. The timing of the ruling coincided with the fifth anniversary of "Levitating's" initial release on her acclaimed album "Future Nostalgia."
In response to the ruling, Brown and Linzer's attorneys expressed their intent to appeal, emphasizing their disagreement with the decision while the legal team for Dua Lipa has yet to make a statement to the press.
