A song from Grammy winner Olivia Dean’s 2025 album “The Art of Loving” is at the center of a copyright infringement case.
Dean’s ballad “I’ve Seen It” highlights love’s ups and downs and the many forms it takes. The song wraps up the album with a melody similar to another song by the late Bill Withers. Last week, Mattie Music Group, the label that oversees Withers’ catalog, filed a one-count copyright infringement suit in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California against Capitol Records, Universal Music Group, Sony Publishing, and Kobalt Music Publishing America.
The Lawsuit
Representatives for the music group said in the complaint that they “came to what they considered to be the obvious and inescapable conclusion that ‘I’ve Seen It’ copied in large and significant part” from Withers’ and Grover Washington Jr.’s 1980 Grammy-winning “Just the Two of Us.” Dean composed and co-wrote the song with Bastian Langebæk and Max Wolfgang. Neither Dean nor the co-writers are named defendants.
The melody around the lyrics “I’ve heard it laced in every song and still words all come out wrong,” on Dean’s track is strikingly similar to the melody of the lyrics “I see the crystal raindrops fall and the beauty of it all,” in Withers’.
Mattie Music Group alleges that, because of the track’s popularity, Dean and her collaborators “had a reasonable opportunity to encounter the Original Work before creating ‘I’ve Seen It’” and that Dean’s song repeatedly copies “the distinctively protectable melody.” They also claim the musicians “clearly infringed” on the copyrights related to Withers’ song.
A Common Issue in the Industry
Inspiration, originality, and remixes have been hot-button issues in the music industry for years, and the legal lines have been murky and troublesome for artists.
In 2015, Marvin Gaye’s family won nearly $7.4 million after suing Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams for copyright infringement, alleging that their 2013 hit “Blurred Lines” copied Gaye’s 1977 classic “Got To Give It Up.”
In 2016, Mattie Music Group sued rapper Kendrick Lamar for lifting from Withers’ 1975 track “Don’t You Want to Stay?” for his song “I Do This” without permission. This lawsuit resulted in a settlement.
Another lawsuit involving Gaye’s music: in 2023, Ed Sheeran won a lawsuit filed by the heirs of Ed Townsend, who co-wrote Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On.” The suit alleged that Sheeran infringed on Gaye’s musical composition in his 2014 song “Thinking Out Loud” by copying the four-chord progression and syncopated harmonic rhythm.
After a federal jury ruled that Sheeran and his co-writer, Amy Wadge, did not steal from Gaye, Sheeran criticized these lawsuits and their effect on artistry, saying coincidences in songwriting are bound to happen and that pop music uses only so many notes and chords.
Inspiration vs Infringement
Inspiration means using existing themes or ideas to create something new, while infringement is the unauthorized use of a protected work. Creatives of all kinds understand that artists before them inspire them consciously or unconsciously. Was Dean simply inspired by and unintentionally lifted from Withers’ song? Since no one on Dean’s team attributed proper credit, does it matter? I spoke with Just N Life’s resident music expert and social media manager, Andy Zapata, about the suit.
“The fine line between inspiration and what we in music production call interpolation, remix, even covers depends on how much of the actual song or melody you’re using,” says Zapata, a songwriter and music producer. “The thing about this one is that, as it wasn’t credited and there was no disclosure that maybe she or her team got inspired by the song, she is, of course, committing copyright infringement.
Elements of this case share similarities with the Stella Leftly plagiarism controversy. Just this year, Lefty found herself in hot water after being accused of ripping off Noah Kahan’s “Stick Season” in her debut “Boston.” Kahan’s representatives reached out to Lefty after noticing the similarities. Kahan was added as a credit to avoid a dispute.
Dean is widely known for her 70s-inspired soul and R&B style. Much of her branding reflects that, citing icons like Jill Scott, Amy Winehouse, Al Green, and Aretha Franklin as inspirations.
“These things can happen. We can get inspiration from whatever, and sometimes we do without knowing,” said Zapata. “A lot of the melodies that you hear, they are in tons and tons and tons of other songs without you noticing.”
What Happens Next?
If the case goes to court, Withers’ publishers will likely argue that Dean or her team couldn’t have missed “Just The Two Of Us” given its decades of success and radio play.
“For them to win this lawsuit against Olivia’s team, they need to prove that Olivia has already heard the song before,” said Zapata. “They will need to credit the artists and composers of the song in her song and pay them the royalties they deserve.” The suit targets Dean’s label and publishers, seeking to determine responsibility for profits and statutory damages and to obtain a permanent injunction against further distribution.
Dean is a frontrunner for Album of the Year at the 2027 Grammys. She won Best New Artist at the 2026 Grammys and BET Awards. Her 2025 album “The Art of Loving” won British Album of the Year at the 2026 Brit Awards. She also won Artist of the Year, Best Pop Act, and Song of the Year for her single “Rein Me In” with Sam Fender.
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