You might recall back in August it emerged that US group Sleigh Bells were suing Demi Lovato for unlawfully ripping-off their track ‘Infinity Guitars’ for her track ‘Stars’. Now, an undisclosed settlement has been reached in the case.
In 2015, Sleigh Bells sent out a Tweet to Demi Lovato stating that they were “flattered you […] sampled Infinity Guitars & Riot Rhythm for “Stars” but we were not contacted. Gotta clear those.” The eventual lawsuit did not mention the track ‘Riot Rhythm’, but the group did announce they were seeking “‘substantial profits’ in damages and that sales and broadcast of the track be stopped ‘permanently'”.
.@ddlovato Demi Lovato flattered you guys sampled Infinity Guitars & Riot Rhythm for “Stars” but we were not contacted. Gotta clear those.
— SLEIGH BELLS (@sleighbells) November 2, 2015
The original complaint stated that “‘Stars’ included significant portions of ‘Infinity Guitars’, with no effort being made by Demi Lovato, her producers, or her label to clear the alleged sample. The complaint further claimed that a “comparison of the two songs reveals that, at the very least, the combination of the hand claps and bass drum, structured as 3 quarter beats and a rest, with the bass drum providing a counter-rhythm to the hand claps, is at least substantially similar in both works.”
Now, as Billboard reports, an undisclosed settlement has been reached between the two parties. While details of the settlement are yet to be released, lawyers for both parties are in the process of memorialising the deal. Considering how similar the two tracks sound, we can only hope that Sleigh Bells have received, at the very least, credits for the parts that were allegedly sampled within the track. Give both of the songs a listen below to refresh your memory about this controversy.
