Dua Lipa sued by songwriter duo, reggae band alleging copyright infringement on ‘Levitating’

Dua Lipa probably isn’t levitating after learning about two new lawsuits filed against her. 

The 26-year-old Grammy-winning artist is facing a double whammy of copyright infringement lawsuits over her hit song “Levitating” after songwriters L. Russell Brown and Sandy Linzer claimed she copied their 1979 song “Wiggle and Giggle All Night” and the 1980 song “Don Diablo,” the latter of which they acquired the copyright for after filing a similar claim of infringement. Reggae band Artikal Sound System also alleged copyright infringement against Lipa and her collaborators for their 2017 song “Live Your Life.”

In a complaint filed Friday in Manhattan federal court, Brown and Linzer allege the opening melody in Lipa’s song is “a duplicate” of the opening melody from their songs. The complaint also names Warner Records, along with the writers and producer of “Levitating,” as part of the infringement.

“Lipa admitted that she deliberately emulated prior eras of music to create ‘Future Nostalgia,’ the aptly named album on which ‘Levitating’ appears,” the complaint reads. “In seeking nostalgic inspiration, Defendants copied Plaintiffs’ creation without attribution.”

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According to court documents, in addition to a jury trial, Brown and Linzer are also seeking full statutory damages up to $150,000; a permanent injunction that would prohibit “further reproduction, sale, performance, or other use” of “Levitating”; and a complete accounting of all net profits made “in connection with the creation, marketing, sale and other exploitations” of the song.

“Wiggle and Giggle All Night” was recorded and released by disco singer Cory Daye in 1979. The song spent nine weeks on the Netherlands charts and had “an extensive tour in Dutch nightclubs,” according to the lawsuit. “Don Diablo” was recorded and released by Spanish singer Miguel Bosé in 1980. Bosé performed the song at the 2018 Viña del Mar International Song Festival, which is “the oldest and largest music festival in Latin America.”

Artikal Sound System’s complaint, filed March 1 in Los Angeles federal court, also names Warner Records along with Lipa and the song’s producers and writers. The band alleges that in 2020, the defendants listened to and copied “Live Your Life” as they were writing “Levitating.” Artikal Sound System believes that it’s “highly unlikely” that Lipa’s song was written independently given the similarities between the two records.

According to court documents, Artikal Sound System is alleging they are owed profits from “Levitating” in addition to damages and are demanding a jury trial. 

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Lipa’s “Levitating” earned the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s 2021 year-end Hot 100 Songs chart after spending 68 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart, according to Billboard. 

Artikal Sound System is based out of South Florida and was founded in 2012 by Chris Montague and Fabian Acuña, according to their website. The band released their latest album “Welcome to Florida” last month and is expected to kick off their tour in March.

USA TODAY has reached out to representatives for Lipa and Artikal Sound System, as well as Brown and Linzer’s attorneys.

Lipa’s “Levitating” was also remixed and featured DaBaby, though she criticized the rapper after he made homophobic comments during a performance last year. 

Lipa wrote on her Instagram story that she was “surprised and horrified at DaBaby’s comments.”

“I really don’t recognize this as the person I worked with,” Lipa wrote at the time. “I know my fans know where my heart lies and that I stand 100% with the LGBTQ community. We need to come together to fight the stigma and ignorance around HIV/AIDS.”

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Lipa, who won a best new artist Grammy at the 2019 awards, was nominated for six awards the following year. She was a contender in the record of the year and song of the year categories for “Don’t Start Now.” Her album “Future Nostalgia” was up for album of the year, which she ended up winning. 

It’s an album that’s “shaped me so much,” Lipa told USA TODAY in 2020 about “Future Nostalgia.” “It’s given me so much confidence and joy, and helped me grow.”

The album served as the centerpiece of her virtual concert “Studio 2054,” presented as part of the American Express “Unstaged” series. The ticketed livestream drew more than five million views worldwide during its first airings, according to Lipa’s representatives.

Lipa is currently in the midst of her “Future Nostalgia” tour, which kicked off Feb. 9 in Miami.

Contributing: Patrick Ryan and Edward Segarra 

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