Photo: Fatih Aktas/Anadolu Agency/Getty
The second day ofEd Sheeran’s copyright infringement trial took a turn when Kathryn Griffin Townsend, the woman accusing the British singer of ripping off the 1973 Marvin Gaye classic “Let’s Get it On” with “Thinking Out Loud,” collapsed in the courtroom.
Kathryn was able to exit the courtroom with the help of her family and legal counsel, though she collapsed when she was outside the doors. She remained lying on the ground as someone called for a medic. Later, Judge Louis L. Stanton announced Kathryn had been taken to the hospital.
Kathryn’s attorney Ben Crump did not immediately return a request for comment.
Ed Sheeran.Stephanie Keith/Bloomberg via Getty
Earlier in the hearing, Stewart played a computer-generated version of “Let’s Get It On” to compare the deposit copy of the song to the studio version of “Thinking Out Loud.” (A deposit copy is the sheet of music submitted to a record label, not the recording).
There was also a moment of back and forth due to Stewart’s transcription of “Thinking Out Loud,” as Sheeran’s legal team argued that he altered the sheet music he was using to compare.
Stewart also claimed that the “musical value” of “Let’s Get It On” and “Thinking Out Loud” is 70%.
The cross-examination of Stewart will resume on Thursday, while Sheeran is expected to testify later this week.
On Tuesday, during questioning from the plaintiff’s legal team,Sheeran arguedthat many pop songs share similar chord progressions, and said that his decision to do a mash-up of “Thinking Out Loud” and “Let’s Get it On” at a 2014 concert was not the “smoking gun” that Crump claimed it was.
RELATED VIDEO: Ed Sheeran Announces ‘Honest’ New Album, Reveals Wife Cherry Seaborn Had a Tumor During Pregnancy
“If I’d done what you’re accusing me of doing, I’d be an idiot to stand on stage in front of 20,000 people and do that,” the musician said. “It is my belief that most pop songs are built on building blocks that have been freely available for hundreds of years.”
The pop star grew visibly frustrated multiple times on the stand, including when Kathryn’s legal team shared lyrics from his song “Take It Back” that included a reference to plagiarism, but did not allow Sheeran to explain the context of the lyrics.
“I feel like you don’t want me to answer because what I’m going to say is going to make quite a lot of sense,” Sheeran said.
Elsewhere, Sheeran revealed that he first heard “Let’s Get It On” inAustin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Meas a child, and also explained that “Thinking Out Loud” came from an emotional conversation he had with co-writer Amy Wadge about the love his grandparents shared.
source: people.com
