News Americas, New York, NY, Sept. 13, 2024: Guyanese-British singer Eddy Grant has won a copyright infringement lawsuit against former U.S. President Donald Trump, after a federal judge ruled that Trump’s 2020 campaign unlawfully used Grant’s hit song “Electric Avenue” in a campaign video without permission.
The case was filed by Grant in 2020 when Trump’s team used the 1982 chart-topping song in a video shared on social media attacking then-presidential candidate Joe Biden. Grant expressed dismay at the unauthorized use of his music, which led to the lawsuit.
Trump’s legal team had argued that their use of the song fell under the fair use doctrine, which allows limited re-use of copyrighted material under certain circumstances. However, Judge John G. Koeltl firmly rejected this argument, stating that the campaign video did not modify the song’s lyrics, vocals, or instrumentals, and offered no justification for its extensive use.
In his ruling, Judge Koeltl said, “The video has a very low degree of transformativeness, if any at all,” describing it as “wholesale copying of music to accompany a political campaign ad.”
Following the ruling, Grant’s attorney, Brian D. Caplan, said that his client was “gratified” by the decision, noting that it underscores the importance of protecting artists’ rights. “Politicians are not above the law, and the court reaffirmed that,” Caplan said.
While the court ruled that Trump and his campaign were legally liable for copyright infringement, the amount of damages Trump will have to pay Grant is yet to be determined in future proceedings.
Trump has faced similar complaints from other artists during his political campaigns. Notable acts such as Beyoncé, Celine Dion, and ABBA, as well as the estates of Sinead O’Connor and Isaac Hayes, have voiced opposition to the unauthorized use of their music.