There are only 12 musical notes used, and most popular music is based on similar bar and chord structures. So accusations of plagiarism are very common in this world. It happened to George Harrison, who had to give up two-thirds of the rights of his first big solo hit, My Sweet Lord, because it looked too much like He’s so fine, from the girl band The Chiffons. He beatle He had to admit that he knew the song, because it had been played a lot on the radio, but he was convinced that he had composed something original. Led Zeppelin, The Beach Boys, Bob Dylan, Michael Jackson, Lana del Rey, Oasis and Coldplay, among many others, have all gone through similar situations, not always well resolved. Melodies and lyrics are imitated: Enrique Bumbury was told that 37 songs were inspired by texts by other authors, mostly poets.
Unintentional or unconscious plagiarism has been given a name: cryptomnesiaand it has nothing to do with bitcoin but with hidden memories, those that remain in memory without attributing their source and context. Songwriting is a complicated thing: the creator turns over a melody that is floating around in his head, some verses that fit there. No song is created from nothing, but from the past of what has been heard. On the other hand, there is a long tradition in North American music, from folk and country to blues or early rock and roll, of covering other people’s songs with minimal variations without crediting them. Only when the record industry became professional, in the 40s and 50s, did a body of composers appear for the great performers; only in the 60s, starting with the Beatles, did the idea of musicians composing their own pieces become established.
When an artist is accused of plagiarism, he or she has two possible strategies. Claiming cryptomnesia saves his or her honor, but it means negotiating a payment for the original author and adding him or her to the credits. So some artists prefer the other route: solemnly proclaiming that they never knew anything about the plaintiffs’ subject, and convincing them that any resemblance is a mere coincidence. In such cases, judges have to resort to musical experts (a difficult but fascinating job) or literary experts, and finally get involved in determining how much one song resembles another.
Perhaps the best-known song of the current pop phenomenon, Taylor Swift, is Shake It Off. Its chorus says: “Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play / and the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate” (‘Cause gamers gonna play, play, play / And haters gonna hate, hate, hate), a message that suggests you don’t listen to bullies, or rather, you don’t care about criticism. The song was a runaway hit in 2014, and it still gets a lot of airplay, but it turns out that lyric fragment is almost identical to one from a very different song: Gon’ Play Beacheswritten by Sean Hall and Nathan Butler for 3LW, a female trio who published it in 2001 (“Playas, they gon’ play / they gon’ play / And haters, they gonna hate / they gon’ hate”)It took five years of fighting in the courts for the parties to They will reach an agreement in 2022, which remains secret.
The dispute, interesting even if we do not know the outcome, is narrated in a CNN documentary: Taking on Taylor Swift. “Facing Taylor Swift” would be the most accurate translation, but in Spain it has been given a more obvious title as usual: Taylor Swift: Original or plagiarismand is available in Max. Hall and her lawyer speak, music and copyright experts speak, and many other cases of plagiarism are mentioned, the level of unconsciousness of which is difficult to estimate: in some of them, the musicians were diligent in admitting the authorship of others. Olivia Rodrigo intervenes, a star greatly influenced by Swift and who has acknowledged her as co-author of several of her songs.
We don’t have a version from Swift or her lawyers. But we do know the defense strategy of the great pop diva’s team, which was somewhat confusing. In her first written statement, she claimed that she had never heard the song by 3LW, because in her house only country CDs were played and never the radio; that fell apart when an old recording appeared in which the young singer declared herself a fan of the MTV program. Total Request Live, where it had been performed, with some impact in its day, Gon’ Play Beaches. The judges initially They considered the disputed phrase too “banal” as to be protected by law, but the successive appeals ended in the agreement of which we know nothing. It is legitimate to deduce that there was some financial compensation, but no recognition in the credits (nor a confidentiality agreement, given what is said in this program).
The most controversial thing about the documentary is that some voices agree that there is a pattern in this type of usurpation that they relate to the systemic racism in the culture industry. In American popular music, it has been all too common for white artists to appropriate creations by black authors and make them available to a wider audience. Not just songs: styles, rhythms, verses, slang expressions. It may be considered too sweeping a conclusion for this particular case, a minor stain given the size and career of the singer, but there is no lack of precedents. And, as in My Sweet Lord, We have a big white star using elements from the song of a less illustrious African-American girl band.
However, regarding the alleged plagiarism contained in Shake It Off The report does not reach a clear verdict, as there was none in the courts. It is pointed out that, just as a successful melody remains in the subconscious of many who heard it, a successful phrase from a song can transcend the popular vocabulary, at least that of certain population groups. Sooner or later it will reappear somewhere. Swift’s defense argued that it would not be possible to make songs today without repeating a single expression that others have said. A very complex debate remains open. Popular music has always been voracious in feeding on outside influences. Too voracious in many cases.
Of course, cryptomnesia isn’t something that only happens to musicians. Do you really think that all your ideas are original?
