{"id":16189,"date":"2023-11-09T09:38:23","date_gmt":"2023-11-09T09:38:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/plagiarismcheck.org\/blog\/?p=16189"},"modified":"2025-11-11T20:03:30","modified_gmt":"2025-11-11T20:03:30","slug":"the-10-most-famous-plagiarized-songs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/plagiarismcheck.org\/blog\/the-10-most-famous-plagiarized-songs\/","title":{"rendered":"The 10 Most Famous Plagiarized Songs"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cSteal Like an Artist\u201d is not only a famous book title but an actual approach creators tend to implement, often unintentionally. It is astonishing how many legendary musicians have not only been accused of echoing someone’s songs in their creations but also been brought to court for blatant plagiarism.<\/span><\/p>\n

Well, if even the Beatles and Madonna are susceptible to picking someone’s ideas, other content creators would definitely want to use a reliable <\/span>plagiarism checker<\/span><\/a> to ensure originality before they publish their work!<\/span><\/p>\n

Getting this little piece of advice, let’s see what famous songs were (allegedly) plagiarized.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cGet Free\u201d by Lana Del Rey<\/span><\/h2>\n

\u201cGet Free,\u201d the song released in 2017 as part of Lana Del Rey’s fifth album, in 2018 became the cause of legal action against the singer. According to Del Rey’s Twitter, the famous English band Radiohead accused her of plagiarising their 1992 hit \u201cCreep\u201d and asked for 100% publishing royalties. In her turn, Lana Del Rey denied that Radiohead’s song inspired her \u201cGet Free\u201d and offered 40% royalties. The conflict resulted in an undisclosed settlement.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ironically, Radiohead themselves were accused of plagiarism for this very song. It turned out the musicians took elements from Albert Hammond and Mike Hazlewood’s 1972 melody “The Air That I Breathe.” Radiohead acknowledged the borrowing, credited Hazlewood and Hammond as cowriters, and paid royalties, but did that only after legal action had been taken.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cShape of You\u201d by Ed Sheeran<\/span><\/h2>\n

The best-selling 2017 song, \u201cShape of You\u201d by Ed Sheeran, contains an interpolation of TLC’s \u201cNo Scrubs\u201d melody. The musician added it consciously, wanting the song to sound more R&B. However, the negotiations regarding interpolating the 1999 hit were not finalized until \u201cShape of You\u201d was released. As a result, Ed Sheeran paid royalties and mentioned\u00a0 Kandi Burruss, Tameka “Tiny” Cottle, and Kevin “She’kspere” Briggs as co-writers.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAnybody Seen My Baby?\u201d by The Rolling Stones<\/span><\/h2>\n

“Anybody Seen My Baby?” by the legendary Rolling Stones rock band is a vivid example of unintended plagiarism. The vocalist Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards, who composed the song, had to add writing credits for k.d. lang and Ben Mink, as the song’s chorus appeared similar to lang’s “Constant Craving” hit of 1992.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to Richards’ autobiography \u201cLife,\u201d the Rolling Stones musicians had never heard “Constant Craving” before writing their song. He describes the moment they discovered the similarity in the book, “My daughter Angela and a friend were at Redlands, and I was playing the record, and they start singing this totally different song over it. They were listening to k.d. lang’s ‘Constant Craving.’ It was Angela and her friend that recognized it.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Rolling Stones gave writing credit to lang, who was reported to be \u201ccompletely honored and flattered\u201d by the gesture.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cErotica\u201d by Madonna<\/span><\/h2>\n

One of Madonna’s hits cost her $2.5 million. In the track, the singer used “El Yom ‘Ulliqa ‘Ala Khashaba” by Lebanese singer Fairuz as part of the spoken-word vocals. After the track was released in September 1992, Fairuz stated that she hadn’t given permission to use her vocals. According to the Lebanese singer, the lyrics “He was crucified today” in Arabic were taken from a religious song traditionally heard during Good Friday services. The lawsuit was settled out of court. However, both the single and the album \u201cErotica\u201d were banned in Lebanon.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIce Ice Baby\u201d by Vanilla Ice<\/span><\/h2>\n

American rapper Vanilla Ice did not give credit for the bassline melody until \u201cIce Ice Baby\u201d became popular in 1990. It turned out Vanilla Ice, K. Kennedy, and DJ Earthquake, the authors of \u201cIce Ice Baby,\u201d used “Under Pressure” by Queen and David Bowie for their hip-hop hit. So Queen and Bowie’s representatives had to threaten the rapper with a suit before he paid financial recompense and mentioned Bowie and Queen as co-songwriters. The rapper admitted using \u201cUnder Pressure,\u201d saying he got inspiration from mixing rock and hip-hop.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhatever\u201d by Oasis<\/span><\/h2>\n

The song used in Coca-Cola and Vodafone commercials was released by Oasis in 1994. \u201cWhatever\u201d was written by the band’s lead guitarist, Noel Gallagher, and caused a copyright infringement lawsuit. Neil Innes claimed Oasis borrowed a portion of the melodic line of his “How Sweet to Be an Idiot” song. As a result of the lawsuit, Innes was credited as co-songwriter. Notably, the part of the melody causing the case is just the eight notes of the song.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cLevitating\u201d by Dua Lipa<\/span><\/h2>\n

English-Albanian star Dua Lipa recorded \u201cLevitating\u201d in 2018 and released it in 2020. In 2022,\u00a0 Artikal Sound System band filed a lawsuit against Lipa and her label, accusing them of plagiarizing the song \u201cLive Your Life,\u201d released in 2017. The reggae band stated the song producers knew\u00a0 \u201cLive Your Life\u201d before the \u201cLevitating\u201d release.<\/span><\/p>\n

Moreover, the same year, songwriters L. Russell Brown and Sandy Linzer claimed that Lipas’s hit had similarities to the 1979 “Wiggle and Giggle All Night” by Dr. Buzzard’s Original Savannah Band.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, Dua Lipa’s attorneys proved she was unaware of both songs before composing \u201cLevitating.\u201d The claimants were moved to drop the suit, and in this case, if unintended plagiarism even took place, it didn’t entail legal consequences.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cNew Slaves\u201d by Kanye West<\/span><\/h2>\n

The coda in Kanye West’s \u201cNew Slaves\u201d features “Gy\u00f6ngyhaj\u00fa l\u00e1ny” by G\u00e1bor Presser, a Hungarian composer who sued the American rapper in 2016. \u201cNew Slaves,\u201d released in 2013, includes singing over the “Gy\u00f6ngyhaj\u00fa l\u00e1ny” written by Hungarian rock band Omega in 1968-1969. The song’s composer stated that although West asked permission to use the sample and paid a deposit towards the alleged agreement, the check was never cashed. As a result of the lawsuit, West reached an out-of-court agreement with Presser.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cViva la Vida\u201d by Coldplay<\/span><\/h2>\n

If there were a contest for the song accused of being plagiarised for the most amount of times, Coldplay’s \u201cViva la Vida\u201d would have all the chances to win.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Creaky Boards band accused Coldplay of plagiarising the melody of “The Songs I Didn’t Write,” even making a clip comparing the two songs. Coldplay’s spokesman managed to prove the inconsistency of the claim. So Creaky Boards retracted the accusations.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2008, Joe Satriani stated that \u201cViva la Vida\u201d contains portions of his 2004 “If I Could Fly”. According to Coldplay, all the similarities were accidental, and eventually, the case was dismissed – potentially, Satriani and Coldplay musicians agreed on an out-of-court settlement.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2009, the British musician Yusuf Islam claimed that \u201cViva la Vida\u201d is similar to his “Foreigner Suite\u201d song. Coldplay musicians declined the claim, and later, Islam said he supposed that unintended plagiarism took place.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2011, American music professor Dr. Lawrence Ferrara drew the line under the accusations with a comparison of \u201cViva la Vida,\u201d “If I Could Fly,” and “Foreigner Suite” melodies to 1736 “Se tu m’ami” by the Italian composer Giovanni Battista Pergolesi. He showed the similarities between the melodies’ structures and offered to consider the work as \u201cthe public domain.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYou Are Not Alone\u201d by Michael Jackson<\/span><\/h2>\n

\u201cYou Are Not Alone\u201d was written by R. Kelly for Michael Jackson in 1994. The composition has become a Guinness World Record as the first song to debut at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the charts of numerous countries.<\/span><\/p>\n

Following the song’s success, Edward and Daniel van Passel from Belgium filed a suit claiming that \u201cYou Are Not Alone\u201d is similar to the “If We Can Start All Over” song they registered with the Belgian Society of Authors, Composers and Publishers in 1993, but never released commercially.<\/span><\/p>\n

The court found 43.46% similarity between the melodies, considering it a coincidence. In 2007, the Court of Appeal in Brussels concluded that the song could be plagiarised, which led to the ban of \u201cYou Are Not Alone\u201d music and video on all Belgian radio and television broadcasts and the van Passel brothers being recognized as the co-authors of the famous ballad in Belgium.<\/span><\/p>\n

Bonus Track: \u201cCome Together\u201d by the Beatles<\/span><\/h2>\n

Coldplay vocalist Chris Martin once said, “For some reason, God only knows why, the successful songs seem to be the ones that are accused of being stolen.” It seems that the legendary Beatles can confirm this idea. In 1969, Big Seven Music accused John Lennon of plagiarising Chuck Berry’s “You Can’t Catch Me” song both musically and regarding some lyrics.<\/span><\/p>\n

The suit was settled out of court, and as a result, Lennon promised to compensate by recording three songs for the new album with Big Seven Music. As the third song hadn’t been released before Lennon’s death, the owner of Big Seven Music, Morris Levy, sued Lennon for the breach of contract and got $6,795.<\/span><\/p>\n

In her book \u201cBig Magic,\u201d Elizabeth Gilbert described a concept of ideas traveling from artist to artist in search of someone to implement them. The numerous examples of unintended plagiarism in music seem to prove it!<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Here are some experience-based strategies to help you boost your skills, evade plagiarism, and enjoy the process and the result of writing!<\/em><\/p>\n

1. Explore the sources<\/h2>\n

Original ideas are the key to original writing.\u00a0<\/b>So, rule number one: never limit yourself to one source of information. Even if your paper is based on some concepts and you need to consult the books, always look for different angles on the problem. This way, you can compose a proper research paper rather than retell the content of one article. Analyzing and explaining the subject of your writing in your own words will definitely sound more authentic than paraphrasing somebody\u2019s work.<\/p>\n

2. Discover your truth<\/h2>\n

Key number two: bring value.<\/b>\u00a0Your individuality is the unbeatable contributing factor that makes your paper original, as literally no one else can share your experience. You can operate with facts and somebody\u2019s concepts and theories if your task requires that, but a personal touch is always what makes the difference. Think of what fresh ideas you can add to your writing and what examples from your experience, reflections, or thoughts can enrich the work. Develop your writing style so it will be distinguishable among hundreds of others. It\u2019s not only about essays but your personality: find your voice, and don\u2019t be shy about speaking your truth! Then, your writing will always be inimitable, just as you are.<\/p>\n

3. Cite and attribute<\/h2>\n

It\u2019s okay to quote someone; it\u2019s plagiarism if you don\u2019t attribute.\u00a0<\/b>The copying problem is not exactly in using some sources but in passing someone\u2019s ideas for one\u2019s own. Honesty is the answer: if you implement somebody\u2019s work, recognize it.<\/p>\n