Aaron Dessner has earned himself some clout in the pop sphere in recent years thanks to his work on Taylor Swift’s new albums; He’s collaborated with her on Folklore, Evermore, Fearless (Taylor’s Version), and Red (Taylor’s Version). He’s earned the favor of at least one Swift-adjacent music superstar, too, as Ed Sheeran says he and Dessner have been working together.
Sheeran is in the midst of a legal copyright battle over “Shape Of You,” and during the trial, Sheeran noted (according to BBC News reporter Mark Savage) that he and Dessner recently wrote 25 songs together in the span of a week.
Speaking at his copyright trial in London's High Court, @edsheeran says he recently wrote 25 songs in the space of a week with @Aaron_Dessner of The National.
— Mark Savage (@mrdiscopop) March 7, 2022
BBC reports songwriters Sami Chokri and Ross O’Donoghue say the hook of Sheeran’s “Shape Of You” is strikingly similar to part of “Oh Why,” which Chokri released as Sami Switch in 2015. The pair’s lawyer claimed Sheeran “borrows ideas and throws them into his songs, sometimes he will acknowledge it but sometimes he won’t.”
For his part, Sheeran denied he’s a “magpie” who incorporates the work of others without acknowledgement. He pointed out that he regularly shares credit with lesser-known artists, like he did on recent tunes “Shivers” and “Visiting Hours.”
Ed Sheeran is a Warner Music artist. .
