The “Blurred Lines” trial finds Pharrell and Robin Thicke guilty
March 16, 2015
The jury of the Blurred Lines trial cleared up the verdict and unanimously found artists Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams guilty of copyright infringement for their 2013 song “Blurred Lines.”
The family of the late Marvin Gaye accused Thicke and Williams of plagiarizing Gaye’s song “Got to Give it Up” in their hit song “Blurred Lines.” As a result, the family hired Nashville law entertainment attorney Richard Busch to sue the singers, along with the featured rapper T.I, and demanded over $25 million from the singers.
Howard King, the defending attorney of Thicke and Williams, told the jurors that a verdict in favor of the Gaye family may repress the creativity of artists and inhibit musicians from trying to create different styles of music. But King’s plea did not alter the decision of the jury.
The jury’s final verdict ordered Thicke and Willams to pay $7.3 million to Gaye’s family. The jury found the general structure and melody of “Blurred Lines” to be very similar to that of Gaye’s song.
During the trial, both songs were played, but only part of “Got to Give it Up” was played due to past copyright laws. Although he denied stealing the song, Williams admitted “It sounds like [they are] playing the same thing,” upon hearing both of the songs’ bass lines.
Gaye’s three children, Nona, Frankie and Marvin Gaye III, were present when the jury awarded the money to them.
Since the release of “Blurred Lines” in 2013, the song has gained $16,675,690 in profit, with Thicke receiving $5,658,214, Williams $5,153,457, and T.I. $704,774. The remainder of the money was given to several record companies: Interscope, UMG Distribution and Star Trak.