Entertainment

Pharrell Tells Jury He Didn’t Copy Gaye Music for Hit Song

Published

10 years ago

March 5, 2015

Pharrell Williams leaves Los Angeles Federal Court after testifying at trial in Los Angeles, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. The Grammy-winning singer Williams says he wasn't trying to copy the late Marvin Gaye's music for the hit song "Blurred Lines," but he was trying to evoke the feeling of late 1970s tunes. Williams is being sued by Gaye's children, who claim "Blurred Lines" improperly copies their father's hit "Got to Give it Up." Singer Robin Thicke and rapper T.I. are also defendants in the case. (AP Photo/Nick Ut)

Pharrell Williams leaves Los Angeles Federal Court after testifying at trial in Los Angeles, Wednesday, March 4, 2015. (AP Photo/Nick Ut)

ANTHONY McCARTNEY, AP Entertainment Writer

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Pharrell Williams told a jury Wednesday that he was trying to evoke the feel of Marvin Gaye’s music but did not copy the late singer’s work when he crafted the 2013 hit “Blurred Lines.”

Williams said he grew up listening to Gaye’s music and was familiar with his song “Got to Give It Up,” but did not use it as a basis for “Blurred Lines,” which was a hit for him and collaborators Robin Thicke and T.I.

“He’s one of the ones we look up to,” Williams said. “This is the last place I want to be.”

Williams, Thicke and T.I. are being sued by Gaye’s children who claim “Blurred Lines” infringes their father’s copyrights for 1977’s “Got to Give It Up,” but Williams’ testimony is crucial because he wrote the song’s music and most of its lyrics. Although Thicke received a songwriting credit on the song, he acknowledged earlier in the trial that he didn’t do much work on the song.

T.I.’s rap track was added later, and Williams said he wasn’t involved in its inclusion in “Blurred Lines,” which was nominated for a Grammy Award. T.I., whose real name is Clifford Harris, is expected to be among the case’s final witnesses on Thursday.

Williams spent more than an hour describing his musical process and he how he crafted “Blurred Lines” in mid-2012 in between working on tracks with Miley Cyrus and rapper Earl Sweatshirt. Thicke arrived after the music and lyrics had been written, Williams recalled. He quickly brought the singer up to speed and they began recording what would become 2013’s biggest hit song.

“We were bopping and dancing,” Williams recalled. “It was a cool night.”

His answers were sometimes too lengthy for U.S. District Judge John A. Kronstadt, who cut off Williams several times mid-sentence and didn’t allow him to elaborate on some of his answers.

“Blurred Lines” has earned more than $16 million in profits and more than $5 million apiece for Thicke and Williams, according to testimony offered earlier in the trial.

Williams said after the song was released, he saw similarities between “Blurred Lines” and Gaye’s work but said that wasn’t a conscious part of his creative process.

Richard S. Busch, who represents the Gaye family, asked Williams whether he felt “Blurred Lines” captured the feel of the era in which Gaye recorded.

“Feel,” Williams responded. “Not infringed.”

The case opened last week and featured testimony from Thicke, who told jurors that he took a songwriting credit on “Blurred Lines” despite Pharrell doing most of the work.

Thicke brought a bit of showmanship to a trial that has focused on minute details of chords and sheet music. He performed elements of “Blurred Lines” and hits by U2 and The Beatles to show how different songs can include similar-sounding musical elements.

Williams did not perform any music during his more than hour of testimony, and complained that audio comparisons of “Blurred Lines” and “Got to Give It Up” had been created in a way that made them sound similar.

Despite the lack of vocals on the tracks, Thicke bobbed his head while his hit was played.

The trial has included detailed analysis of snippets of chords and notes from both songs, all created in the same key. Jurors have heard “Blurred Lines” and lawyers for Gaye’s family wanted the panel to hear “Got to Give It Up,” but Kronstadt has limited how the song can be presented in court. Rulings state Gaye’s song can only be played as it appears in a sheet music submitted to get the song copyright protection.

Williams’ career as an artist-producer has been booming in recent years, with the singer performing his hit “Happy” at the 2014 Oscars just weeks after winning three Grammy Awards for his work with Daft Punk.

He also serves as a judge on the NBC competition show “The Voice.”

___

Anthony McCartney can be reached at http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Up Next

Nick Gordon To Discuss Bobbi Kristina Brown’s Condition With Dr. Phil

Don't Miss

Bay Area African American Women in Music: Jazz Singer Mary Stallings Still Feelin’ Good After All These Years

Oakland Post

Click to comment

Activism

Oakland Post: Week of December 18 – 24, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of December 18 – 24, 2024

Published

2 days ago

December 20, 2024

Oakland Post

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Arts and Culture

Promise Marks Performs Songs of Etta James in One-Woman Show, “A Sunday Kind of Love” at the Black Repertory Theater in Berkeley

“The (show) is a fictional story about a character named Etta, aka Lady Peaches,” said Marks. “She falls in love with Johnny Rhythm, leader of the Rhythm Players Band and headliners of Madam G’s Glitta Lounge.” Marks channeled the essence of Etta James, singing favorites such as “Sugar on the Floor” and “At Last.”

Published

4 days ago

December 18, 2024

Oakland Post

Photo Courtesy Of Promise Marks.

Special to the Post

It was “A Sunday Kind of Love” at the Black Repertory Group Theater in Berkeley on Saturday night, Dec. 7. The one-woman musical based on the music of Etta James featured the multi-talented singer Promise Marks

Marks, who wrote and directed the musical, also owns PM Productions.

Marks channeled the essence of Etta James, singing favorites such as “Sugar on the Floor” and “At Last.”

In between her soulful songs, Marks narrated impactful moments of the love story and journey of blues and forgiveness.

Marks sultry voice carried the audience back to an era that echoed with the power of Black music and a time of great change.

Marks said James shared love for the Black community by singing at gatherings during the Civil Rights Movement uplifting the people.

“She spoke to the movement, spoke to the people, and let her music speak for itself,” Marks said.

Backing the musical’s monologues, images and videos of Etta James are projected for the audience to view. While the production is fictional, Marks infused script with the unfairness and heartbreak James experienced while performing.

Marks performed gospel artist Donnie McClurkin’s “We Fall Down” as she narrated acts of reconciliation and forgiveness among the characters at Johnny Rhythm’s deathbed.

Marks, who regularly sings for the Miss America Pageant, was asked to perform as Etta James last year. “(At the event) a lady yelled out to me: ‘You’re Etta James!’ And then the audience went crazy. I said to myself, ‘I may have something here,’” she said.

Within 12 months, Marks created the musical production, which featured a dozen songs honoring “the great legacy of Etta James,” she said.

Marks says she was saddened to see how Etta James was often judged by the struggles in her life and wanted to offer attendees a more layered view.

“Etta’s life was so big. I want people to know that she was more than her drug addiction,” said Marks. “We can’t make that her legacy. Her catalog is too amazing. You can’t just be that and have the catalog that she (created). I don’t want the addiction to be the focus: I want her music, her element, her sassiness, and what she brought to be the focus – her woman-ness, that she was strong, and I wanted to honor that.”

Set Designer Nora Burnette says she created the set segments to mirror James’ life story. A set designer for BRG since 2016, she explained that her process of researching the scenario and the character serve as her inspiration for her design.

“I try to design a set as close to real life as possible so that the actress can deliver the performance sincerely,” said Burnette. “By creating the right setting, it helps the actors release the true essence of a character.”

The set brought the story to life and absolutely floored Marks. “Once Promise (Marks) saw the actual set, she understood my vision: ‘Wow, you get me. You get it,'” Marks told the designer.

Born Jamesetta Hawkins, Etta James, began her career in 1954 and gained fame with hits such “At Last” and “I’d Rather Go Blind.” She faced a number of personal problems, before making a musical comeback in the late 1980s with the album “Seven Year Itch.”

Co-producer and BRG Development Director, Sean Vaughn Scott, works with Overseer Production. According to producer Pamela Spikes, “Marks talent truly does Etta’s life story justice.”

Pam Jacobs of Hercules, a friend of Marks’ mom, Jackie Smith, said, Marks “was fabulous and sang all of those songs flawlessly.”

“I’m so proud of my daughter,” said Smith.

Marks, who has served as an instructor for BRG, will return on Feb. 21- 23 for an encore run of the musical.

“It’s an honor to be a part of the BRG (Black Repertory Group) family and continue our executive director Dr. Mona Vaughn Scott’s vision for the Black Repertory Group theater,” said Marks.

The Black Repertory Group Theatre is located at 3201 Adeline St., Berkeley, CA 94703. For information, visit: BlackRepertoryGroup.com