Justin Bieber and Dan + Shay are reportedly being hit with a lawsuit for copyright infringement on their 2019 hit song “10,000 Hours”.
The song was a collaboration between the country-pop duo and the Canadian singer. It debuted at Number 1 on Billboard’s Country Airplay when it was first released, later winning the trio a Grammy for Best Country Duo/Group Performance in 2021.
TMZ reportedly obtained a lawsuit, recently filed, that claims the group stole a key portion of their collab from Asia Luckey’s 2014 song, “First Time Baby Is a Holiday,” originally written in 1973 by Palmer Rakes and Frank Fioravanti.
The companies that say they own the “First Time” song allege Bieber and Dan + Shay copied the chorus, verse, and hook and tried to pass it off as their own. In the documents, they claim that it’s unmistakable how similar the two songs are.
“10,000 Hours” has nearly 2 billion streams across the globe, according to the lawsuit, and the companies are suing the trio for money and credit, along with an injunction to prevent further distribution of the song.
The Independent has reached out to Bieber and Dan + Shay’s representatives for comment.
This lawsuit comes nearly a month after Bieber dropped a $20m (£16.2m) defamation lawsuit against two women who accused him of sexual assault on social media.
In 2020, the singer addressed the accusations on Twitter, writing: “I don’t normally address things, as I have dealt with random accusations my entire career.”
He further denied them, adding: “Rumours are rumours, but sexual abuse is something I don’t take lightly.”
