Corey Taylor Weighs in on Music Copyright Lawsuits: ‘Music Cannot Be Copywritten; Lyrics and Melody Can’

Photo Credit: Owen Ela

Recently, Slipknot and Stone Sour’s Corey Taylor spoke with 94.3 The Shark radio station in new interview. When asked his opinion on Ed Sheeran’s now won copyright infringement lawsuit filed by Ed Townsed’s estate, Taylor responded with the statement, “Cryptomnesia. It’s a very real thing. And we just saw it play out in the courts with Ed Sheeran”. Cryptomnesia refers to the phenomenon of memory bias that causes an individual to believe they invented or created something when they did not.

Photo Credit: Owen Ela

He then continued, “The thing that I love that [Ed] proved is that chord progressions are going to be similar going all the way back, going all the way forward; it’s what you do over the top of them.” 

Further explaining  his creative process saying, “Obviously, I try to avoid anything that sounds similar anyway. ‘Cause that stuff doesn’t interest me. So I really go above and beyond to really try and make sure that everything I do sounds different, feels different. And if it does start to sound a little too similar, I rein it in and I break it down and restructure it from scratch.”

The lawsuit’s accusations claim that Sheeran unlawfully employed the song’s  “harmonic progressions” and “melodic and rhythmic elements” in the singer’s 2014 song, “Thinking Out Loud”. On May 3rd, it was officially declared Sheeran did not copy Marvin Gaye’s 1973 song, “Let’s Get It On” which was co-written by Ed Townsend.

Jaden Johnson: My name is Jaden Johnson, I am a current Mass Media Arts student at Clark Atlanta University with a concentration in Journalism. I'm passionate about all things music and aspire to have my hands in the industry one day.
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