The jury of the federal court in Manhattan, which was to judge for ten days of this emblematic case of music copyright, found that the 32-year-old singer had created his song "independently" and that his global hit of 2014, "Thinking Out Loud" was not a partial copy of the famous "Let's Get It On" of the prince of soul Marvin Gaye in 1973.
Sheeran, who has attended the hearings since April 24 defending himself from plagiarizing Gaye's title, stood up at the statement of the decision, thanked the jury and gave his team a hug, according to an AFP reporter in the courtroom.
The consequences of the outcome of this trial were important: a verdict against the singer could have "cooled" artists in musical creation, warned some musicologists and lawyers.
The plaintiffs were heirs of Ed Townsend, an American musician and producer who co-wrote the track "Let's Get It On" with Marvin Gaye, an African-American soul legend (1939-1984).
The civil party pointed to "striking similarities and clear common elements" between this song and "Thinking Out Loud".
This is the second trial won in a year by Ed Sheeran: he had also won in April 2022 a separate legal battle at the High Court in London, which had rejected two musicians accusing him of copying one of their works for his mega hit "Shape Of You".
In New York, the British singer-songwriter even had to play guitar and sing in court as a token of good faith.
© 2023 AFP