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<\/a><\/p>\nBy Jack Queen and Luc Cohen<\/p>\n
NEW YORK (Reuters) -With Ed Sheeran on the witness stand in Manhattan federal court on Tuesday during a copyright trial, jurors were warned to keep their composure while watching a video of the British pop star performing a medley of his hit song “Thinking Out Loud” and the classic Marvin Gaye tune “Let’s Get it On.” <\/p>\n
“We don’t allow dancing,” U.S. District Judge Louis Stanton instructed the seven-member jury.<\/p>\n
Lawyers for heirs of songwriter Ed Townsend, Gaye’s co-writer on the 1973 hit, showed the video to bolster their allegation that Sheeran, his label Warner Music Group and music publisher Sony Music Publishing owe them a share of the profits for allegedly copying the song. <\/p>\n
Ben Crump, a lawyer for the heirs, said in his opening statement that the performance amounted to a “confession” by Sheeran. <\/p>\n
Under questioning from Keisha Rice, another lawyer for the plaintiffs, Sheeran said many pop songs use the same three or four chords, and that he performs “mash-ups” of many songs at his concerts. <\/p>\n
“You could go from ‘Let it Be’ to ‘No Woman, No Cry’ and switch back,” Sheeran testified, referring to the Beatles and Bob Marley classics. “If I had done what you’re accusing me of doing, I’d be a quite an idiot to stand on a stage in front of 20,000 people and do that.” <\/p>\n
The trial is the first of three Sheeran could face from lawsuits over similarities between the two hits.<\/p>\n
In her opening statement, Sheeran’s lawyer Ilene Farkas, said the two songs are distinct and told jurors that the plaintiffs should not be allowed to “monopolize” a chord progression used in countless songs.<\/p>\n
Sheeran at one point grew frustrated when Rice cut off his response about the medley. <\/p>\n
“I feel like you don’t want me to answer because you know that what I’m going to say is actually going to make quite a lot of sense,” he said. <\/p>\n
Sheeran is expected to testify again later in the trial as part of the defense case. <\/p>\n
If the jury finds Sheeran liable for copyright infringement, the trial will enter a second phase to determine how much he and his labels owe in damages. The first trial is expected to last about a week.<\/p>\n
(Reporting by Jack Queen and Luc Cohen in New YorkEditing by Matthew Lewis and David Gregorio)<\/p>\n
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