One of the kings of pop music, British Ed Sheeran, plagiarized Marvin Gaye’s famous song “Let’s get it on” for his hit “Thinking Out Loud”? This question must be answered by the jury, the selection of which began on Monday in the federal court of New York, reports AFP.

In April 2022, the 32-year-old singer-songwriter won a similar but separate legal battle when London’s High Court dismissed a claim by two musicians who accused him of copying one of their compositions for the mega-hit Shape of You.”

This time, the plaintiffs are the heirs of Ed Townsend, an American musician and producer who wrote “Let’s get it on” with Marvin Gaye. Released in 1973, this soul classic is still famous for its guitar notes and Motown Prince’s sultry vocals.

In their copyright complaint, Townsend’s heirs, who include his daughter, say there are “striking similarities” to “Thinking out loud,” released in 2014.

They note that Boyz 2 Men mixed two songs on stage. Ed Sheeran himself performed very different vocal lines of the two hits over identical guitar harmonies, a sequence that can still be seen online.

This “evidence” is denied by the singer’s lawyers, who claim that “there are dozens, if not hundreds, of songs before and after Let’s put it on that use the same or a similar chord progression.”

Ed Sheeran’s hit hit #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and won the 2016 Grammy Award for Song of the Year.

The complaint, filed in 2016, was initially dismissed due to procedural issues and then re-filed in 2017, also against Sony.

Ed Sheeran appeared in person to defend his song “Shape of you” at an earlier trial in London, a case he said was emblematic of abusive practices that undermine creativity.

The star may also be present during the trial in New York, which will begin Tuesday after jury selection ends Monday, the lawyer said.