Adele, the Grammy-winning singer known for hits like Hello, Set Fire to the Rain, and Rolling in the Deep, is facing legal trouble over one of her lesser-known songs which could be pulled forever.
A Brazilian composer alleges that the British pop star plagiarised his 1995 samba classic Mulheres (Women), performed by Martinho da Vila, for her 2015 track, Million Years Ago.
Toninho Geraes, who boasts an average Spotify monthly listenership of 264,100, is seeking $160,000 (£127,000) in moral damages, a songwriting credit, and lost royalties, the Mirror reports.
The claim, first lodged in September 2021, has gained some ground in a Rio de Janeiro court. Judge Victor Torres issued an injunction against Adele and her labels, Sony and Universal, ordering the song’s worldwide removal.
If the injunction isn’t obeyed, Adele faces a fine of $8,000 (£6,300) “per act of non-compliance”, as reported by news outlet AFP.
Sony and Universal were hit with an injunction yesterday, commanding them to cease “immediately and globally, from using, reproducing, editing, distributing or commercialising the song Million Years Ago, by any modality, means, physical or digital support, streaming or sharing platform.”
Although the injunction is preliminary, allowing for an appeal against Judge Torres’s ruling, it stands as a bold move in the music industry. Geraes’s legal representative, Fredimio Trotta, hailed the decision as “landmark” in Brazilian music history, suggesting that domestic artists are often unsung muses for global chart-toppers.
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He added: “International producers and artists who have Brazilian music ‘on their radar’ for possible parasitic use will think twice, given this decision.”
So far, no comments have been forthcoming from Sony Brazil or Universal Music Brazil, and Adele herself has not spoken on the issue. Trotta plans to disseminate news of the injunction this week, informing international radio, television, and streaming services.
This controversy isn’t new to Adele; following the release of her album “25” in 2015, Turkish music critics drew parallels between Million Years Ago and Ahmet Kaya’s 1985 track Acilara Tutunmak (Clinging to Pain). Kaya passed away in 2000.
Despite the allegations, a legal case was never pursued as Kaya’s widow expressed her belief that it was improbable for the singer to have plagiarised from the Turkish artist. In an interview with the Turkish national newspaper Post, she stated that she didn’t think any similarities were intentional, adding: “However, if she consciously did it, then it would be theft.”
‘Million Years Ago’ has been a hit for the pop star and even garnered her a Daytime Emmy Award nomination.
Following its release, she performed it live on the Today show. This performance was submitted for the awards and led to Adele being shortlisted in the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Musical Performance in a Daytime Program category.
However, she was pipped to the post by Rachel Platten’s rendition of ‘Fight Song’ on Good Morning America.
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