Bruno Mars wants to avoid a ‘Blurred Lines’ type lawsuit over ‘Uptown Funk’

theGrio REPORT - Uptown Funk now has eleven writers on record, all because Bruno Mars doesn't want there to be any possibility of a lawsuit.

TheGrio Staff

May 2, 2015

Uptown Funk now has eleven writers on record, all because Bruno Mars doesn’t want there to be any possibility of a lawsuit.

At first, the hit single had just six songwriters attached to it: Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars, co-producer Jeffrey Bhasker, Phillip Lawrence, Trinidad James (whose real name is Nicholas Williams) and producer Devon Gallaspy. However, six more were added to the list: the Wilson brothers — Charlie, Robert and Ronnie — as well as keyboardist Rudolph Taylor and producer Lonnie Simmons.

These five were responsible for writing Oops Upside Your Head, and when Minder Music submitted a claim on the group’s behalf on Youtube, Mars and Ronson wanted to avoid the kind of scene that a Blurred Lines style lawsuit would bring.

Danny Zook, Trinidad James’ manager, explained the decision:

Everyone is being a little more cautious. Nobody wants to be involved in a lawsuit. Once a copyright dispute goes to a trial, [if a jury is used], it is subject to be decided by public opinion — and no longer resolved based entirely on copyright law.

With Uptown Funk positioned to be an even bigger hit than Blurred Lines, it is little wonder that Mars and company want to avoid the kind of payout that Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams had to give.

Grio fam, listen to the two track below and let us know if you think they’re similar enough to warrant a co-writer credit.

Oops Upside Your Head