WASHINGTON, May 27 (UPI) — Justin Bieber and Skrillex are facing a copyright infringement lawsuit over their hit single “Sorry,” which allegedly uses vocals from White Hinterland’s “Ring the Bell.”
Casey Dienel, the artist behind Hinterland, filed the suit claiming the two knowingly used her original vocal loop on the pop song. Her attorneys claim warnings were sent to the two superstars, but they were never acknowledged.
“The identical and/or striking similarity of ‘Sorry’ to Plaintiff’s song ‘Ring the Bell’ surpasses the realm of generic coincidence and independent creation,” the complaint read, according to Entertainment Weekly.
Soon after filing the complaint, Dienel posted a lengthy message on Facebook regarding the suit, saying: “I offered Bieber’s team an opportunity to have a private dialogue about the infringement, but they refused to even acknowledge my claim, despite the obviousness of the sample. Justin Bieber is the world’s biggest artist, and I’m sure that he and his team will launch a full attack against me.
But, in the end, I was left with no other option. I believe I have an obligation to stand up for my music and art.”
In the post, Dienel discussed how she poured her “blood, sweat and tears,” into the song “Ring the Bell,” and she was shocked to hear it throughout Bieber’s tune.
Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp. and Universal Music are also named as defendants in the suit.
Compare the two songs below:
