Ariana Grande is familiar with lawsuits at this point, as she was on both sides of them in 2019. Last year, she was sued for posting photos of herself on Instagram, and she sued Forever 21 for allegedly using her likeness without her permission. Now, the new year is bringing a new lawsuit: Grande is being sued by singer, songwriter, and producer Josh Stone (aka DOT) over her No. 1 hit “7 Rings.”
Stone believes that the “7 Rings” chorus rips off his 2017 track “You Need It I Got It.” In the lawsuit, he says two musicologists concluded that ‘7 Rings’ likely copied the choruses and hooks from Stone’s song.
Furthermore, the suit says that songwriter and producer Thomas Lee Brown, a co-defendant who has worked with Grande on all five of her albums, was at meetings Stone had with Universal Music Group executives where “You Need It I Got It” was played.
In the suit, Stone is asking for “declaratory judgment of copyright infringement; a judgment that enjoins Grande and her co-defendants from continued acts of infringement; judgment ordering defendants to deliver ‘7 Rings’ to Stone for destruction; actual damages and profits attributable to the infringement or, alternatively, statutory damages; and attorneys’ fees and other related costs.”
Grande’s co-defendants are Brown; songwriter-producers Charles Michael Anderson and Michael David Foster; songwriters Taylor Monet Parks (better known as Tayla Parx), Kimberly Anne Krysiuk, Victoria Monet McCants, and Njomza Vitia; BMG Rights Management; Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp.; Kobalt Songs Music Publishing; The Royalty Network Inc.; Universal Music Corporation; and Concord Music Group.
Stone’s attorney Tamir Young told Billboard, “The level of copying in ‘7 Rings’ is simply shocking. This is a stronger case of infringement than ‘Blurred Lines’ or Katy Perry’s ‘Dark Horse.’ The rash of copyright infringement in music has caused incredible harm and injustice to lesser known or up and coming artists and songwriters.”
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. .
