‘Blurred Lines’ – ‘Got to Give It Up’
When done legally and properly, using samples from older songs in new music can be a blessing. But when done incorrectly, the consequences can be brutal as Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams found out with their 2013 summer hit ‘Blurred Lines’. The song draws similarity with Marvin Gaye’s ‘Got To Give It Up’, released in 1977. Despite ‘Blurred Lines’ being one of the best selling records of all time, Gaye’s family took those associated with the song to court and won the legal case, resulting in a payout of $5 million to Marvin Gaye’s estate.
Breonna Chenelle, a Marketing Director at Rumor Media Agency, said: “When artists remake R&B records or turn them into pop music, I feel like it (sampling) comes off as laziness, especially when they are following the same melody of the original. In rap I don’t mind sampled beats, as long as it doesn’t have the same flow as the original.”
Whether people like it or not, sampling is a popular phenomenon with music listeners and proves time and time again that it can land a song at the number one spot. Whether it’s the nostalgia we like, hearing something done another way, or just the catchiness of the original sample, we can’t deny the effect of hearing a contemporary artist fall back on a familiar melody.
Words by Hannah Youds
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