Miley Cyrus is fighting back against plagiarism claims over her hit single Flowers, denying accusations that she copied Bruno Mars’ 2012 track When I Was Your Man.
Cyrus’ lawyers dismissed the copyright infringement lawsuit filed by Tempo Music Investments in September, arguing that the company lacks the standing to sue, per documents obtained by People on Wednesday.
Tempo Music, which holds a portion of the copyright to Mars’ song through co-writer Philip Lawrence’s catalog, is not affiliated with the track’s other co-writers, Ari Levine and Andrew Wyatt.
Cyrus’ legal team contends that only those with exclusive rights to a song can file such a lawsuit, and since Tempo is only an assignee of one co-writer, they argue it has no legal grounds to sue.
The lawsuit, which claims that Flowers plagiarizes Mars’ ballad, was filed after fans and critics drew comparisons between the two tracks.
However, Cyrus’ attorneys have requested the case be dismissed, emphasizing that ‘an assignee of only one co-author lacks exclusive rights and, therefore, also lacks standing to sue for infringement,’ according to the outlet.
In its lawsuit, Tempo Music claims that Miley ‘intentionally copied’ Mars’ 2012 hit When I Was Your Man for her chart-topping single Flowers, citing substantial similarities between the two songs.
The investment firm argues that both the melody and harmonies in Flowers bear a striking resemblance to Mars’ track, particularly in the verses and chorus.
Both songs were major hits, each topping the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
While When I Was Your Man’ earned a 2014 Grammy nomination for Best Pop Solo Performance, Flowers went on to win Record of the Year — the same category Mars was nominated for — and was also nominated for Song of the Year, though it didn’t take home the win.
The lawsuit accuses Cyrus, her producers Kid Harpoon and Tyler Harper, as well as her label, of having access to Mars’ song, despite the fact that When I Was Your Man has been widely available for years through physical media and streaming.
Tempo Music is seeking unspecified damages and, more drastically, is asking for ‘Flowers’ to be removed from digital platforms and future physical releases of Cyrus’ 2023 album Endless Summer Vacation.
The firm is also pushing to prevent Cyrus from performing the song in the future.
Interestingly, it is Tempo Music — rather than Mars himself — that has filed the lawsuit, following its acquisition of part of the song’s copyright.
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