Ed Sheeran denies copyright claims during court trials of his hit track 'Shape of You'

Ed Sheeran's song Shape of You released on 6 January 2017, became a massive hit and gained widespread popularity all across the world. Recently, the Shape of You singer was surrounded by a controversy revolving around the song. The popular singer landed himself in legal trouble in a copyright lawsuit that has been filed over his hit track, where he was accused of stealing particular lines and phrases.

Reportedly, the British singer was alleged of stealing ideas from songwriters Sami Chokri and Ross O'Donoghue. The duo claimed that Shape of You was similar to Chakri's track Oh Why and filed a case in court. After which Ed Sheeran headed to the court for the legal battle. Sheeran created Shape of You along with co-writers Steve Mac and Snow Patrol's Johnny McDaid, who were also a part of the hearing.

Ed Sheeran denies Shape Of You copyright claims

The legal battle kickstarted on Friday and as per the reports of People, during the London High Court hearing on Monday, Sheeran denied the claims. Addressing the issue, the British singer clarified his stance and revealed that he had cleared parts of songs with lots of unknown artists.

According to BBC, before the hearing on Friday, the songwriters' lawyer claimed that Sheeran "borrows ideas and throws them into his songs, sometimes he will acknowledge it but sometimes he won't".

Sheeran denied the claim stating he is not someone who will steal others' work without acknowledgment, giving an example of Shivers and Visiting Hours. The renowned singer further reveals that he has often given credit to lesser-known artists. Adding to which he told the court-

"All those examples are not famous artists that we've cleared songs with and that's what I have to say on that" 

For the unversed, this is not the first time Ed Sheeran has faced legal action for copyright infringement on his songs. He was earlier sued over his song Photograph, which was settled in court. However, he was also sued for $100 million for Thinking Out Loud, which is still an ongoing case.

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