Image: Justin Timberlake and Chris Stapleton (not pictured perform a medley of songs at the 49th Annual Country Music Association Awards in Nashville, Tennessee November 4, 2015. REUTERS/Harrison McClary
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Cirque du Soleil is not doing flips over Justin Timberlake’s hit’song “Don’t Hold the Wall.”
The Canadian theatrical performance company on Thursday sued the superstar singer with allegations that the song copied part of one of Cirque du Soleil’s original compositions without permission.
Timberlake’s song appeared on his 2013 double album “20/20,” which has sold more than two million copies.
The lawsuit filed in federal court in New York claimed Timberlake borrowed from the song “Steel Dream,” which was originally on Cirque du Soleil’s 1997 album, “QUIDAM.”
The suit’seeks a minimum of $800,000 in damages for copyright infringement.
In addition to Timberlake, the lawsuit also named among the defendants the producer Timbaland – real name Timothy Mosley – who helped write the song, and Sony Music Entertainment, which released the album.
Representatives for the defendants did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Thursday.
Copyright infringement lawsuits are relatively common in the music world. In one high-profile case last year, the estate of soul singer Marvin Gaye won a $7.4 million jury verdict against Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams over their hit’single “Blurred Lines.”
(Reporting by Joseph Ax; editing by Grant McCool)
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