Lawsuit alleges copied melody
A complaint lodged Thursday in California's Central District federal court claims Olivia Dean's track 'I've Seen It' takes 'in large and significant part' from Bill Withers' Grammy-winning 'Just the Two of Us'. Mattie Music Group, holder of Withers' catalog rights, states it retained a musicologist whose comparison of the two recordings revealed 'substantial similarities'. According to the filing, written notice of the alleged infringement went out in August to Capitol Records, Universal Music Group, Sony Publishing, and Kobalt Music Publishing America. Dean herself is not listed as a defendant.[S1][S2][S3][S4][S5]
On Monday, none of the defendants offered an immediate reply to a comment request. NBC News also sought statements from the Withers estate and from Dean. The lawsuit maintains that even after being put on notice, the defendants kept reproducing, distributing, licensing, publicly performing, and commercially exploiting the allegedly infringing work.[S1]
Withers song and Dean album
Withers, who passed away in 2020, sang lead vocals on 'Just the Two of Us', a recording featuring jazz saxophonist Grover Washington Jr. Sent to radio in 1981, it became a major success for Withers, climbing to No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earning a Grammy for Best R&B Song, the lawsuit notes. Mattie Music Group argues that given the track's popularity and 'decades of radio play', the defendants had a fair chance to hear it before they made 'I've Seen It'.[S1]
'I've Seen It' is featured on Dean's album 'The Art of Loving', which won her Best New Artist at the Grammy Awards in February.[S1]
