ECNETNews, New York, NY, September 4, 2024: Lawyers for former President Donald Trump and Guyanese-born singer-songwriter Eddy Grant are set to appear in a Manhattan courtroom this Friday to dispute Grant’s iconic ‘80s hit, “Electric Avenue.”
Grant initiated legal action against Trump four years ago after the former president shared a cartoon mocking Joe Biden that included 40 seconds of “Electric Avenue” without authorization. The tweet, posted in August 2020, garnered an impressive 13.7 million views before being deleted, leading Grant to seek $300,000 in damages for the unauthorized use of his work.
While Grant, a UK citizen residing in Barbados, is not alone in objecting to Trump’s use of music during his political campaigns, his case stands out as one of the few to advance to this stage of litigation. Unlike many other artists who have merely sent cease-and-desist letters, Grant and a handful of others have opted to take their grievances to court.
Trump’s legal representatives will contend that Grant did not properly copyright the sound recording of “Electric Avenue” upon its release in 1983. They acknowledge that the song’s sheet music was copyrighted; however, they argue that the actual sound recording lacked protection, thereby invalidating the copyright claim.
In contrast, Grant’s legal team points to the 2001 copyright transfer of “Electric Avenue” to Grant’s company, Greenheart UK, following the expiration of Warner Records’ rights. They maintain that Grant rightfully holds the sound-recording copyright for the song.
Additionally, the court will consider whether Grant’s recent 2023 application for a sound-recording copyright on “Electric Avenue” impacts the current case. As this legal battle continues, a trial date has not yet been established.
The crux of the dispute revolves around whether Trump’s use of the song falls under the “fair use” doctrine in copyright law and if the song’s value has been diminished due to its inclusion in the tweet. Both parties are gearing up for a long-awaited resolution to this four-year legal conflict.
