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Stevie Wonder has weighed in on the legal battle involving the family of his fellow Motown legend Marvin Gaye and Robin Thicke over alleged similarities between Thicke’s smash hit “Blurred Lines” and the late Gaye’s 1977 tune “Got to Give It Up.”
Speaking with TMZ in a recent video interview, Wonder declares that he doesn’t think “Blurred Lines” is “a steal from Marvin Gaye.”
Noting that he’s been through his own lawsuits over songs, Wonder says that although he thinks the groove of Thicke’s tune “is very similar, [Robin is] a big fan of Marvin Gaye’s, so that’s OK.”
Stevie also has a warning for Gaye’s family as they consider a copyright infringement suit. “Don’t let your lawyer get you into losing money on something that’s not worth it,” he says.
Last month, Thicke and his two co-writers on “Blurred Lines” — Pharrell Williams and T.I. — filed a preemptive lawsuit against Gaye’s family and the Bridgeport Music publishing company claiming that their song was created “without copying anyone else’s composition.” Billboard reported that the suit was initiated after Gaye’s estate rejected a six-figure settlement that Thicke and his collaborators offered following accusations by the family that Thicke had copied Marvin’s tune.
Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio
