Taylor Swift is shaking off her latest lawsuit, after a judge dismissed allegations that she plagiarized lyrics.
It was first reported in 2015 that R&B artist Jesse Graham had filed a $42 million lawsuit against the singer. In the case, Graham claimed Swift plagiarized the lyrics to his 2013 song “Haters Gone Hate” when writing her hit “Shake It Off," released the following year.
The songs both had similarities, with Graham’s featuring lyrics like, “Haters gone hate, playas gone play. Watch out for them fakers, they’ll fake you every day.” Conversely, the chorus of Swift’s song has the lines, “Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play. And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate.”
“Her hook is the same hook as mine,” Graham told Daily News at the time, adding that if he didn’t write his song first, Swift never would’ve coined “Shake It Off.”
Graham’s original lawsuit was dismissed shortly after it was filed, but that hasn’t stopped the artist from continuing to go after Swift multiple times in the last few years on the basis of plagiarism.
According to Complete Music Update, Graham made a fourth attempt to sue her for plagiarism in 2019. The third time he had filed the case, it was dismissed with prejudice, meaning he couldn’t sue again. But Graham found a way around that, as the fourth time he attempted to sue on behalf of his company rather than himself personally.
Although the fourth attempt was dismissed as well, Graham went on to appeal the decision, which was heard in the Ninth Circuit last week. But just like his previous failed attempts, the court of appeals ruled in favor of Swift.
In an explanation, the court of appeals stated that Graham didn’t provide enough evidence to demonstrate why the previous rulings were unfair. “In his opening brief, Graham failed to address the grounds for dismissal and has therefore waived his challenge to the district court’s order,” they explained.
Complete Music Update notes that Graham was labelled a “a vexatious litigant” by the judge who oversaw his fourth attempt to win the lawsuit. This is a term used to characterize an individual who constantly takes legal action without merit. It means the person may have to overcome additional challenges to have a case heard before the court.
So far, Swift’s team hasn’t commented on the legal victory. However, she’s still embroiled in a legal battle with songwriters Sean Hall and Nathan Butler over “Shake It Off.” The musicians similarly claim she copied lyrics from their 2001 song “Playas Gon Play.” Though Hall and Butler’s original case was dismissed, just like Graham's, they appealed the decision and are continuing to fight their case.
Sources: Time, Daily News, Complete Music Update,
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