Ed Sheeran performs in court to defend against Marvin Gaye copyright claims.
Ed Sheeran testified in Manhattan federal court on Thursday, playing the chord progression to his hit song Thinking Out Loud and singing on the witness stand in a trial over whether he copied Marvin Gaye’s classic Let’s Get it On. Sheeran is being sued by heirs of songwriter Ed Townsend, Gaye’s co-writer on the 1973 song, who are seeking a share of profits from Thinking Out Loud, saying that the syncopated chord progression was copied from Let’s Get It On. The trial is expected to resume on Monday.