Olivia Dean's 'I've Seen It' hit with copyright lawsuit
Olivia Dean's 2025 song 'I've Seen It' is at the center of a copyright lawsuit over alleged Bill Withers similarities
Olivia Dean's song I've Seen It is at the center of a new copyright lawsuit.
However, she is not one of the people being sued.
The defendants are Capitol Records, Universal Music Group, Sony Publishing and Kobalt Music Publishing America. Dean's cowriters, Bastian Langebæk and Max Wolfgang, are also not named.
The suit was filed in California on October 1, by Mattie Music Group. Mattie had the late Bill Withers under contract as a songwriter. It claims Dean's song borrows the "distinct melody" of his classic Just the Two of Us.
The court filing says the similarities are "so striking" that they point away from coincidence, per People.
Mattie says it first heard I've Seen It in August 2026. After listening several times, it says it reached the "obvious and inescapable conclusion" that the song copied Just the Two of Us in large and significant part.
The filing also alleges the cowriters "had a reasonable opportunity to encounter" Withers' song before writing theirs. Mattie wants a trial to decide damages.
Just the Two of Us came out in February 1981. The filing says Withers wrote it with Ralph MacDonald and William Salter. It reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and won a Grammy for Best R&B Song.
Meanwhile, Dean, 27, released I've Seen It as the last track on her 2025 breakthrough album, "The Art of Loving."
Similar cases have ended in wins for the artists. Dua Lipa won a case over Levitating in 2025, and Ed Sheeran was cleared in 2023 over Thinking Out Loud.
These are only allegations, so please keep "claims" and "alleges" when you edit.
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