Marshmello defeats Russian DJ Arty’s copyright lawsuit over 2018 hit ‘Happier’

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Marshmello defeats Russian DJ Arty’s copyright lawsuit over 2018 hit ‘Happier’

By Pallavi Paul

Russian DJ, Arty filed a copyright infringement suit against Marshmello claiming that Marshmello’s double platinum tracker song ‘Happier’ was a copy of the synthesizer melody from his 2014 remix of the song ‘I Lived’. As detailed in the lawsuit, Arty was seeking actual damages in addition to Marshmello’s profits relating to both domestic and foreign sales of the track ‘Happier’ including running royalty on all future exploitations of the same. U.S District Judge rejected the claim and stated that Arty had previously given up ownership of the remix composition of his song in the contract signed with One Republic. 

NEWS

By Pallavi Paul

Hence, there are no grounds to sue Marshmello. Arty doesn’t have any rights over the song to begin with, and can’t sustain a copyright claim over what was allegedly ripped off. One Republic further released the original version of the song ‘I Lived’ under the banner of Interscope Records. Arty was hired to come up with a remix for the song and was paid flat fee in order to give up royalties to the song. The track ‘Happier’ released by Marshmello in collaboration with Bastille, had earned the status of double-platinum and was trending at Number 2 on UK Singles Chart and Billboard Hot 100.

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