This is wild.
Overnight, Ed Sheeran – or at least, his team – very quietly added a couple writing credits, including a ‘Real Housewives‘ star, to his current smash hit ‘Shape of You‘ after folks on the internet pointed out it was very similar to TLC‘s iconic ‘No Scrubs‘.
If you haven’t listened yet, fang your headphones in and smash play below while you read the rest of this yarn.
The lines “Boy, let’s not talk too much / Grab on my waist and put that body on me” is remarkably similar, both lyrics and rhythm-wise, to the classic “No, I don’t want no scrubs / A scrub is a guy that can’t get no love from me”.
‘Shape of You’ is from Sheeran’s latest album ‘÷‘, and has been sitting at #1 on Billboard’s Top 100 chart‘s for seven weeks now (since February 18).
The similarities between ‘Shape of You’ and TLC’s iconic banger about the 90s version of fuccbois has not gone unnoticed.
Said it last night. I’ll say it again. TLC’s lawyers should be on the horn to Ed Sheeran’s people about this “No Scrubs” ripoff. #Grammys
— 500 Words (@500words) February 13, 2017
Shape of you/ No scrubs #MusicMonday pic.twitter.com/pmSUyijbeH
— Sabrina Carpenter (@SabrinaAnnLynn) January 23, 2017
Legendary songwriter Kandi Burruss (who wrote ‘No Scrubs’ along with Kevin “She’kspere” Briggs and Tameka “Tiny” Cottle, and these days stars in ‘Real Housewives of Atlanta‘) even posted a shady Instagram over the weekend thanking the ginger crooner.
Which leads us to this point: Sheeran, very quietly and with no fanfare, adding Burruss, Briggs and Cottle to the writing credits.
Photo: Axelle / Bauer-Griffin / Getty.
