Lucy Ashley

Intellectual Property and Copyright in the Music Industry

Intellectual property is anything that isn’t tangible that was the result of a person or group using their own ideas. In the context of music, this could be a melody, rhythm or even lyrics.

What is Intellectual Property?

It is important to protect intellectual property because the idea belongs to someone. The artist spent their time creating a piece of music that is unique and does not breach copyright laws. Stealing their hard work is the same as stealing someone’s possessions. If an artist is found to have stolen intellectual property, they could owe the original artist millions.

Why Protect Intellectual Property?

In 1990, Vanilla Ice released a new album called To the Extreme which included the hit song Ice Ice Baby. The song went to number 1 in the charts and sold over 7 million copies.

However, the main riff was stolen from the song Under Pressure by Queen ft. David Bowie. When the band heard the song and its uncanny resemblance to Under Pressure they sued Vanilla Ice for copyright infringement.

Originally, Vanilla Ice claimed that he altered the riff to make it his own but eventually admitted to taking the riff from Queen. From then on, he had to credit David Bowie and the members of Queen and pay them for the song’s success.

As he admitted to stealing the song, the case never went to court. However, an undisclosed amount of money was given to Bowie and Queen.

Vanilla Ice VS David Bowie / Freddie Mercury