Ed Sheeran's "Thinking Out Loud" cleared of copyright infringement charges

A jury decided on Thursday that British pop star Ed Sheeran was not liable in a copyright infringement lawsuit that accused him of taking parts of the melody of Marvin Gaye's classic soul song "Let's Get It On" in his hit "Thinking Out Loud."

The jury reached a unanimous verdict, a requirement in the case, after just under three hours of deliberation.

In the decision, the jury members said that Sheeran independently created "Thinking Out Loud," which surpassed all other decisions they had to make to determine whether Sheeran committed copyright violations.

The trial began in a federal court in Manhattan on April 25 and saw the 32-year-old singer take the stand, pick up his guitar and perform for the jury.

The case arose from a lawsuit first filed in 2017 by the heirs of Ed Townsend, co-writer of Marvin Gaye. They claimed that Sheeran's 2014 hit "Thinking Out Loud" had "striking similarities" and shared "manifest common elements" with Gaye's 1973 record "Let's Get It On," which is protected by copyright.

Sheeran said he came up with his song, which he co-wrote with Amy Wadge, after the death of a grandfather. The song is about finding love in old age, he told the court.

During the trial, Sheeran was questioned about a live mashup of the two songs in question recorded in a concert video in Zurich. One of Townsend's lawyers, Ben Crump, called the clip a "smoking gun" and proof that Sheeran was violating copyright.

Sheeran argued that he has made mashups with his other songs and said, "If I was doing it [what I'm accused of], I'd be an idiot to stand in front of people".

Townsend's daughter, Kathryn Townsend Griffin, also took the stand and said she had never heard of the British singer before "Thinking Out Loud".

She said she didn't want the case to go to trial, "but I have to protect my father's legacy".