Taylor Swift shakes off copyright suit

Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift has emerged victorious in a lawsuit brought against her by the songwriters behind 3LW's Playas Gon' Play. The 28-year-old was sued in September by songwriters Sean Hall and Nathan Butler, who contended that 'Shake It Off' infringed on their 2001 song. The plaintiffs' song includes the following line in the chorus: 'Playas, they gonna play, and haters, they gonna hate.' 'Shake It Off' includes the line, 'Players gonna play, play, play, play, play, and haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate.'

According to the Hollywood Reporter, a federal judge dismissed the lawsuit. In his ruling, Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald held that combining the phrases, 'Playas gonna play' and 'haters gonna hate,' does not entail sufficient originality to warrant copyright protection. "[B]y 2001, American popular culture was heavily steeped in the concepts of players, haters, and player haters. ... The concept of actors acting in accordance with their essential nature is not at all creative; it is banal," Fitzgerald wrote. However, he gave plaintiffs one shot to amend their complaint by February 26.

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