Jury Verdict: Robin Thicke and Pharrell Willaim’s “Blurred Lines” copied Marvin Gaye 70s hit “Got to Give it Up”
March 11, 2015
In a report from USA Today, a jury decided that the song “Blurred Lines” by musicians Pharrell Williams and Robin Thicke is copying late singer Marvin Gaye’s hit song “Got to Give it Up.”
Gaye’s family, along with Thicke and Williams had gone to court over whether “Blurred Lines” was an infringement of Gaye’s song and unanimously the jury decided that Thicke and Williams had infringed on Gaye’s song “Got to Give it Up.” USA Today reported that as an outcome, Gaye’s family was awarded $7.3 million.
There is no doubt that “Blurred Lines” was a very popular song. In fact, it was a number one hit on the US Billboard Hot 100 and was a number one hit in many other countries as well. The song was released in 2013 and while it was very popular and catchy, the song was also the center of some controversy. Either way, the song led to a very large payout for both Williams and Thicke. USA Today reported that both Thicke and Williams earned more than $5 million each.
Gaye’s song, “Got to Give it Up,” was recorded in the 1970s and this court case had led to some uncomfortableness because now some artists may be scared to make a song that might have the same kind of sound as a song from a previous decade. However, there was still no dispute among the jury as to if the song was truly original or not.
Both Thicke and Williams denied any sort of copying of the Gaye song and claimed it was completely original. The Hollywood Reporter reported that in total, “Blurred Lines” earned $16,675,690 in profits. This again just goes to show how big this song became and even if fans thought it was original or not, millions of them fell in love with the song.
There was also more drama surrounding the song when earlier this fall Thicke admitted to being both drunk and high at times when recording the song. The Hollywood Reporter also reported that lyrics of the song seem to promote questionable themes and things that are not respectful to women.
However, no matter the controversy around the artists or the lyrics of the song, Gaye’s family is still being awarded millions of dollars and the verdict was that “Blurred Lines” was an infringement of Gaye’s 70s hit, “Got to Give it Up.”