A California judge has denied Taylor Swift’s request to dismiss a lawsuit alleging she copied the lyrics of R&B girl group 3LW’s song ‘Plays Gonna Play’ from 2014.
A California judge has ruled that singer Taylor Swift will face a lawsuit from songwriters who say the Grammy-winning singer plagiarized her lyrics in her 2014 smash single “Shake It Off.” Swift’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit alleging she copied words from R&B girl group 3LW’s 2014 song “Players Gonna Play” was denied by US District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald.
Fitzgerald decided that there were “few noticeable differences” in the lyrics but “enough objective similarities” that the issue should be heard by a jury.
“Although the defendants have made a strong closing argument to the jury, they have not shown that there are no genuine issues of triable fact,” the judge wrote.
A spokeswoman for Swift did not comment Friday. In 2017, his representatives called the songwriters’ claims of copyright infringement “ridiculous” and “nothing more than a money grab”.
In “Shake It Off”, Swift sings: “Players, players, players, players, players, players, and haters, haters, haters, haters, haters. The ones.”
“Players Gonna Play”, written by Sean Hall and Nathan Butler, includes the phrase “Players, they’re gonna play, and haters, they’re gonna hate.”
According to Hall and Butler, the use of ‘places’ or ‘huts’ or hating players in their songs was unique. According to a report , the couple is seeking undisclosed monetary damages.
‘Players Gonna’ Play’ was a minor hit for 3LW. Hall later wrote and produced songs for artists such as Justin Bieber and Maroon 5, while Butler worked with other artists including the Backstreet Boys and Luther Vandross.
Swift’s ‘Shake It off the best-selling single of her career, topping the US charts and reaching number two in the UK (where it was topped by Meghan Trainor’s ‘All About That Bass’ was).
Lawyers for Hall and Butler welcomed the verdict, saying the court “did the right thing”. Swift’s team declined to comment on the incident.
Their case was dismissed in 2018, but both appealed and the case was reinstated. The date of the trial has not yet been announced.
