Dua Lipa has emerged victorious in a copyright lawsuit related to her hit song “Levitating.” A judge in New York dismissed the case, ruling that the similarities between “Levitating” and older songs were not protected by copyright law.
In March 2022, Lipa faced two copyright lawsuits over “Levitating.” One lawsuit was filed by the Florida reggae band Artikal Sound System, which was dismissed in June 2023.
The other lawsuit was brought by songwriters L. Russell Brown and Sandy Linzer. Judge Katherine Polk Failla dismissed this second lawsuit, stating that the common elements between the songs were too generic to be protected.
Brown and Linzer claimed that Lipa copied parts of their 1979 song “Wiggle and Giggle All Night” and their 1980 song “Don Diablo,” both from the disco era.
They argued that the opening melody of “Levitating” was similar to their songs. They also pointed out that Lipa had mentioned in interviews that she intentionally drew inspiration from earlier musical styles to create a nostalgic sound.
However, Judge Failla found that these similarities were not unique enough to warrant copyright protection. The ruling highlights that basic musical elements, such as certain chord progressions and styles, cannot be owned by individual songwriters.
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