English pop star Ed Sheeran celebrated his copyright trial victory by serenading scores of New Yorkers during an impromptu street concert in Manhattan on Friday.
Hundreds of shocked passersby stopped in their tracks to watch the red-headed crooner perform out front of his pop-up shop in SoHo to promote “Ed Sheeran – The Subtract Experience Pop-Up.”
The crowd erupted in cheers as Sheeran, 32, hopped up on the roof of a parked car and started strumming his guitar, videos of the surprise concert show.
On Thursday, a federal jury in New York City found that Sheeran did not rip off Marvin Gaye’s iconic “What’s Going On?” with his 2014 hit “Thinking Out Loud,” concluding a two-week trial.
The copyright lawsuit was first brought about in 2018 by the estate of the late Ed Townsend, who co-wrote the 1973 R&B classic with Gaye. The jurors, three men and four women, deliberated for just under three hours before coming to a decision in the civil case.
Outside of the Manhattan federal courthouse on Thursday, a victorious Sheeran said in a prepared statement that it had been “devastating” to be accused of copying elements of Gaye’s 1973 R&B classic.
“I am just a guy with a guitar who loves writing music for people to enjoy. I am not and will never allow myself to be a piggy bank for anyone to shake,” he said.
During the trial, Sheeran took the stand and even performed acoustic versions of his song for the jury as he made his case that he independently created “Thinking Out Loud” and not stolen from Gaye.
Sheeran argued that the chord progression in question, 1-3-4-5, is common in pop songs.
“When you’re playing a song live and it fits in the same key, most pop songs revolve in the same three or four chords,” the “Shape of You” singer testified.
The Grammy Award-winner was forced to miss his grandmother’s funeral in Ireland due to the trial.
