Taylor Swift Responds To Allegations She Plagiarized One Of Her Biggest Hits
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A big hit is usually followed by several plagiarism allegations, and Taylor Swift is no exception.Swift recently responded to a 2017 lawsuit filed by Sean Hall and Nathan Butler. Hall and Butler wrote the song "Playas Gon' Play" for 3LW. Both men accuse Swift of lifting lyrics from the song for her 2014 smash, "Shake It Off."
According to court documents obtained by E! News, Swift wrote in a declaration dated August 6, "The lyrics to 'Shake It Off' were written entirely by me."
"Until learning about Plaintiffs' claim in 2017, I had never heard the song 'Playas Gon' Play and had never heard of that song or the group 3LW," Swift added.
Swift asserted that in the early aughts, she "almost exclusively" listened to country music, didn't watch TRL, and didn't attend clubs where mainstream music was played.
"The only concerts I went to were for country and folk rock singers, LeAnn Rimes, Billy Gilman and Melissa Etheridge," she said. "My parents limited what I could watch and listen to, and did not permit me to watch TRL until I was about 13 years old."
Swift claimed that the phrases "haters gonna hate" and "players gonna play" were "uttered countless times" by her classmates while attending school in Pennsylvania and Tennessee. She also cited Eric Church's song, "The Outsiders."
In the song, Church sings the lyric, "the player's gonna play and a hater's gonna hate."
"None of the CDs I listened to as a child, or after that, were by 3LW," Swift wrote. "I have never heard the song Playas Gon' Play on the radio, on television, or in any film. The first time I ever heard the song was after this claim was made."
Swift also pointed out a shirt she wore at one of her performances in 2013. The shirt, which Swift said she purchased at Urban Outfitters, had the phrase "haters gonna hate" on it.
Swift also went into her inspiration for writing the song, saying the phrases were used "to express the idea that one can or should shrug off negativity."
"I was reminded of these phrases when I began working on 'Shake It Off' with Max Martin and Shellback in the studio," she added. "I included versions of the players play and haters hate phrases in 'Shake It Off' because, as they express resistance to negativity, they further 'Shake It Off's message of independence and 'shaking off."
She said the lyrics to "Shake It Off" were about "independence and 'shaking off' negative personal criticism through music and dance."
"In writing the lyrics, I drew partly on experiences in my life and, in particular, unrelenting public scrutiny of my personal life, 'clickbait' reporting, public manipulation, and other forms of negative personal criticism which I learned I just needed to shake off and focus on my music," she wrote.
"Shake It Off" was released as the first single from Swift's hit album, "1989." After her re-recordings of her albums "Fearless" and "Red" were released, rumors are swirling that "1989" is coming next.
Is a "1989" re-recording in the works? It looks like we'll have to wait and see.
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