Dua Lipa has emerged victorious in a lawsuit alleging that she copied elements of her chart-topping single "Levitating" from two older songs. The lawsuit, filed in 2022 by songwriters L. Russell Brown and Sandy Linzer, claimed that Lipa borrowed from their disco tracks, "Wiggle and Giggle All Night" (1979) and "Don Diablo" (1980). On Thursday, Judge Katherine Polk Failla dismissed the case, determining that any similarities between the songs were generic and non-copyrightable, resembling musical components that have been utilized by notable composers including Mozart and Gilbert and Sullivan, alongside the Bee Gees' classic "Stayin' Alive."
This marks the second instance of Lipa triumphing in a copyright battle related to "Levitating," which originally became a global hit in 2020. Earlier, she faced a lawsuit from Florida-based reggae group Artikal Sound System, which alleged her chorus echoed their 2015 song "Live Your Life." However, that case was also dropped in 2023 when a judge found no substantial proof that Lipa had access to the earlier music—critical for copyright claims.
Yet, the singer isn't entirely out of the woods. Bosko Kante, a featured artist on "Levitating," has initiated a separate legal action claiming his vocal contributions were used in remixes of the song without consent. Kante is pursuing damages amounting to at least $2 million, alongside profits from the remixes, which he approximates at $20 million.
The complaint by Brown and Linzer revolved around the assertion that Lipa's opening melody in "Levitating" closely mirrored theirs, specifically the lyrics: "If you wanna run away with me, I know a galaxy and I can take you for a ride." However, Judge Failla opined that the claimed similarities were too commonplace to warrant copyright protection. She stated, “A musical style classified as ‘pop with a disco feel’ cannot be deemed protectable,” arguing that ruling otherwise would stifle the evolution of music within that genre.
Interestingly, this ruling coincided with the fifth anniversary of "Levitating’s" release on Lipa's acclaimed album "Future Nostalgia." Following the decision, the attorneys for Brown and Linzer expressed their intention to appeal, as reported by Billboard. The BBC has reached out to Dua Lipa for her comments on this latest development.
