Uh oh. At some point on their journey to world domination, Justin Bieber and Usher may have (accidentally?) stolen someone else’s hard work and translated it into their own. At least, that’s what songwriters Devin Copeland and Mareio Overton are claiming.
“Somebody To Love” was a hugely popular single off Bieber’s album My World 2.0, and featured backing vocals from the singer’s mentor, Usher. The record went platinum in the United States, but did the Biebz really earn it? Copeland and Overton are suing Bieber and Usher for $10 million, MINIMUM, for copyright infringement. They have stated that the two songs, which have the same title, have similarities both lyrically and stylistically. The original song was written in 2008 and, according to the lawsuit, the two original songwriters had previously given a copy of the track to Usher’s representatives. Copeland claims to have spoken to Usher’s mother (a.k.a. momager) about his music, but neither she nor the star’s reps never followed through.
There is still no word from Bieber or Usher, but a jury trial has been requested. I guess we’ll have to wait (probably quite a while) and see what the truth is. Do you think that Usher is responsible, and if so…did poor Justin Bieber know?