Recording stars Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams were found liable on Tuesday (March 10) for copyright infringement in a lawsuit accusing them of plagiarizing the late soul singer Marvin Gaye in their hit single “Blurred Lines.”
The Court observed that Thicke and Williams plagiarised from Gaye’s 1977 hit Got to Give it Up
The U.S. District Court jury in Los Angeles sided with Gaye’s heirs in the closely watched litigation, finding that parts of his 1977 hit “Got to Give it Up,” were lifted by Thicke and Williams for their summer 2013 R&B chart-topper.
The jury verdict included a judgment of $7.4 million to be awarded to Gaye’s heirs, including $3.4 million in profits that Thicke and Williams were found to have derived from the infringement.
Outside the courthouse, Nona Gaye, the daughter of Marvin Gaye, shared her thoughts on the verdict.
Nona Gaye, daughter of Marvin Gaye says, “I feel free. Free from, honestly, free from Pharrell Williams and Robin Thicke’s chains and what they tried to keep on us and the lies that were told and the fact that we were able to break through anyway.”
Several other parties sued by Gaye’s estate, the rapper T.I. and various record and music companies, were cleared of copyright infringement in the case.
(Ventuno)