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Too Many Frivolous Music Copyright Infringement Lawsuits
If a consultant/expert ALWAYS sides with the side that approaches her/him, that consultant/expert is considered by some to be a hired gun. When a consultant/expert turns down the person/side approaching her/him, the consultant/expert is turning down employment. Some will credit a person who can say "no" to money as having some virtue. That person can have virtue but will not have income stemming from virtue or that potential source of income.
Dr. Dre Should Have Hired Me
The moral of the story below? Not hiring me can cost money. Dr. Dre hired a musicologist for an opinion on whether he could use a bass line from another song, one that Dr. Dre had not composed. That expert told Dr. Dre that the bass line was not original and therefore Dr. Dre was free to use it. I would have told Dr. Dre that that bass line WAS original and that Dr. Dre should NOT use it. But, Dr. Dre did not consult with me. Dr. Dre took the advice of a different expert witness and it cost him $1.5 million.
Wiz Khalifa's Black & Yellow Does Not Infringe The Copyright of Pink & Yellow by Maxamillion
Lawyers who are considering filing a music copyright infringement lawsuit should consult someone with expertise in the field of music. I have passed for having "expertise," and U. S. district courts have called me an "expert." When I deal with issues outside of my field, I call on experts. The best lawyers call on experts because the lawyers know that their expertise does not extend to other non-legal areas, especially one such as music that requires so many years of specialization.These lawyers wanted me to agree with their assertion that Wiz Khalifa had infringed the copyright of Maxamillion. They came to me for my expertise. They paid me for my expertise and expert opinion but as soon as they received my expert opinion, they argued with me about my findings.
Do these parts of Alicia Keys' "Girl On Fire" remind you of another song?
There are six (6) places in "Girl On Fire" in which Alicia Keys sings, "Oh oh oh oh oh." Listen to the Alicia Keys "Girl On Fire" and especially these six sections.0.35 oh oh oh oh oh1.39 oh oh oh oh oh2.54 oh oh oh oh oh3.04 oh oh oh oh oh3.15 oh oh oh oh oh3.25 oh oh oh oh ohDo these five (5)-note melodic excerpts, that are heard six (6) times in "Girl On Fire," remind you of another song? As I mentioned, the song to which I am referring was a very big hit that appeared in a very big 1980's hit film. If you recognize the song, do you think there is a potential copyright problem?
Is Alicia Keys guilty of copyright infringement? A lawyer quotes a feebly written blog and files a foolish lawsuit
I was startled to read that "some of the suit is based on my reporting" as I had never heard of a copyright infringement lawsuit filed because of the "reporting" of a blogger, and especially a blogger who demonstrates his incontrovertible ignorance of copyright law.Friedman states, "Hopefully musicologists will be called in, etc. experts who can testify about Keys's use of two lines from the chorus of 'Hey There Lonely Girl' in 'Girl on Fire.'"This is such a poorly conceived and written sentence. First, is Friedman stating his hopes that musicologists "will be called in, etc.?" As a musicologist who has testified in copyright infringement cases in U. S. federal courts for 20 years, I am extremely curious as to what Friedman means by "etc...." As I try to understand, I think he might mean that we are called in and then comes other actions - the etcetra part. Just what does the "etc." of his sentence mean, and have I been "etc.-ing" these past 20 years or should I start "etc.-ing" now to make up for the times in which I did not etcetera?
Does Five For Fighting's "Superman" Infringe Angie Aparo's "Seed? (Part 2 of 3)
Defendant’s expert states that the melody in common is not copyrighted because it can be found in many songs written before the Plaintiff’s song.Plaintiffs demand Defendants’ expert witness prove that the melody in question is not copyrighted.Defendant’s expert witness shows that the melody is found in the music of: Bach, Borodin, Brahms, Dvorak, Foster, Guonod, Haydn. Lear, Mendelssohn and Mozart.Plaintiff demands specificity.Defendant specifies....