• The penalty phase of a copyright infringement trial in Los Angeles over Katy Perry's hit "Dark Horse" opened Tuesday with attorneys for the creators of a Christian rap song telling jurors that the pop superstar's 2013 song earned $41 million overall. The figure will be a key point of contention in determining how much Perry and her collaborators owe the makers of the 2009 song "Joyful Noise." On Monday, the jury returned a unanimous verdict that found "Dark Horse" copied elements of "Joyful Noise," a song Marcus Gray released under the stage name Flame. "Dark Horse," a hybrid of pop, trap and hip-hop sounds that was the third single of Perry's 2013 album Prism, spent four weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 in early 2014. It earned Perry a Grammy Award nomination and was part of her 2015 Super Bowl halftime performance. While copyright infringement claims are common in music, they rarely result in such losses for high-profile artists. Most of the damages dispute will center on the $31 million Capitol Records received from the song. The label contends that after factoring in costs, its profit was a mere $630,000. Perry's lawyers say her "Dark Horse" earnings amounted to $3.2 million, minus $800,000 in costs. Testimony about Capitol Records' costs in creating and promoting "Dark Horse" will begin today."I don't want to give away any spoilers here, but some of the costs, get ready to roll your eyes," said attorney Michael Kahn, who represents "Joyful Noise" artist Gray.
• Lil Nas X's breakthrough song "Old Town Road" has broken the Billboard record set by Mariah Carey's "One Sweet Day" for most weeks at No. 1. Lil Nas X accomplished the feat this week as his country-rap song reached its 17th week on top of the Hot 100 chart. Carey and Boyz II Men's duet set the record in 1996, and the only song to come close to breaking it was the ubiquitous international hit "Despacito," which tied the 16-week record in 2017. "YEEE ... HAWWW," Lil Nas X tweeted Monday. Hours later he posted a video thanking his fans for helping his song set a record. "We just broke the record for the longest-running No. 1 song of all-time," said Lil Nas X, sporting a cowboy hat as he played "Old Town Road" in the background. "Let's go!" "Old Town Road" initially was in a bit of controversy in March when Billboard removed it from its country charts, deeming it not country enough (it peaked at No. 19 on the country charts). But the drama didn't hurt the song; it only propelled it. "Old Town Road," which has achieved most of its success through audio streaming, was originally a solo song but 20-year-old Lil Nas X added Billy Ray Cyrus to the track. Billboard counts the original song and its remixes as one when calculating chart position, thus helping "Old Town Road" stay on top.
A Section on 07/31/2019