It may sound petty but it aint.
Tom Petty sues Sam Smith for the song Stay With Me (but wins).
It took music lovers around the world to notice the similarities between Tom Petty’s Wont Back Down
…and Smith’s Stay With Me.
Results: Petty got paid more than petty cash off of the hit song. He was awarded a percentage of all royalties earned from it (see details here).
Erykah Badu said it best-in all her ebonics’ splendor:
“I’m a artist and I’m sensitive about my sh|t!”
That’s pretty much the sentiment of any creative who works diligently on a project only to look up and hear, or see it look or sound eerily similar to their own blood, sweat and tears.
Hey. I’m a writer. And I too, am sensitive about my sh|t.
So imagine the day when I thought I’d ever regret offering generous samples of my work when I turned to the right of my television only to hear a conversation between two characters on BET’s “Being Mary Jane” (2014).
Backstory.
In an excerpt of a book I’m writing (about interpersonal relationships called Feel Like a Lady Deal Like a Man: Tips & Secrets on Everything from: Self-Esteem, Friends, Love, Sex, and Men), there is a section in there (Gem 6) where I tell women that a lot of times, we mess ourselves over when in the dating game because we don’t masturbate before dates.
Long story short, I pretty much talk about how much easy it is for our bodies to be aroused-and we tend to give it up from going with the feeling whereas, if you masturbate before the date…you tend to be on top of your emotions and more in control of your physiological responses (while making out).
Low and behold, played out on the happening lil’ show, I saw my full, entire, passage (in conversation form) played out right in front of my face-down to the reasoning and all!
I was LIVID.
I know my work. I know how and what I put out.
Funny thing was, however the passage (as an example) was delivered to the writer/s-they didn’t even try to re-word what the hell I said and how I said it.
Furthermore, (me, a writer–nor my work)…was no stranger to the creator of the show (circa 2010) so I knew where it came from.
Because it happened so instantly in my face, I was sitting right in front of my computer and tweeted my anger about it (early 2014).
As a creative/artist, that’s like–a low blow.
I work way too hard and extend and open myself up way to unyieldingly to have been disrespected (and blatantly disregarded) in that manner-when all she had to do was ask me and I would have been merely honored to have been asked (and have it mentioned on their sit-downs they were having when they were promoting the show, of course).
Long story short, at every re-airing of that particular episode (when that part came–the conversation between the two characters), they edited it out.
I recorded both: The stolen conversation scene (and the edit-out from future airings of the scene)…
P.S.
For her song “Holiday,” did you know that Madonna (reportedly) sued Mary J. Blige and Dr. Dre for Barbershop 2’s “Not Today,” Ron Isley/Isley Brothers sued Michael Bolton for “Love is a Wonderful Thing”?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4xAsoCePJ0
…and the estate of Marvin Gaye sued Pharrell / Robin Thicke for “Blurred Lines?”
It happens. It really does.
Sometimes unknowingly: creative coincidences.
And well…other times: blatantly.
