A jury has ruled that Katy Perry‘s 2013 hit Dark Horse lifted the beat from an earlier Christian rap song, marking genuine copyright infringement by the singer and producer Dr. Luke.
[jwplayer VFEHMKh2]
The Hollywood Reporter states a Californian jury decided in favour of plaintiff Marcus Gray, aka Flame, who argued Dark Horse ripped elements of his 2010 tune Joyful Noise.
The jury entered their verdict after hearing testimony from Perry and Dr. Luke, who both claimed not to have heard Joyful Noise before penning Dark Horse, along with statements from musicologists regarding the two tracks.
Have a geez for yourself:
The result concludes a colourful weeklong trial, which featured Perry offering to perform her song for the court after a technical glitch temporarily stopped court officials from playing a recording.
Up next: the damages phase, where the judiciary will decide what Gray is owed as a result of the plagiarism.
While it’s too early to speculate on a precise figure, Gray may have a number in mind, given Dark Horse won an American Music Award, was nominated for a Grammy, featured in Perry’s Super Bowl performance, and topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
We can only hope that other #1 hit about horses doesn’t get bashed in court.
