It has been said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. [Citation needed] [Citation needed] However, it is less flattering and more infuriating when one’s work is replicated and pawned off as the result of someone else’s creative genius. In this scenario, the original author feels less like their work has been validated.
Plagiarism, also known as the ᴜnlicensed copying and use of the work or intellectual property of a third party, continues to be a problem despite the fact that it is generally frowned upon and, in some cases, ιllegal. Plagiarism and other violations of intellectual property rights are a sad reality in many fields, including the arts and entertainment, business, politics, and academia. And even well-known people make mistakes from time to time.
1. James Corden
ɑccᴜsеd of: using a Ricky Gervais joke
James Corden, host of the talk show “The Late Late Show,” is associated with one of the clearest examples of plagiarism. A recent episode of The Late Late Show featured a joke that was almost an exact copy of one that appeared in Ricky Gervais’ 2018 Netflix comedy special Humanity. The host, who is 44 years old, told the joke as part of his opening monologue.In his discussion of the happenings that surrounded Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter, James Corden brought up an analogy that Musk had made in which he compared the social network to a digital town square.
“But it isn’t,” Corden responded, “because if someone puts up a poster in a town square that says ‘guitar lessons available,’ you don’t get people in the town saying, ‘I don’t want to play the guitar!'” “‘You piece of s***, I want to play the piano!'”
A cursory examination of the joke from the stand-up routine performed by Humanity reveals that it is almost an exact replica of the one told by Gervais, in which the British comedian discusses the comments that he receives on Twitter: “That’s like going into a town square, seeing a large notice board, and there’s a notice saying ‘guitar lessons,’ and you saying, ‘But I don’t f***ing want guitar lessons!'”
The star of “The Office” took to Twitter, perhaps somewhat ironically, to comment on the obvious act of plagiarism that had been committed. He made the remark in a tweet that has since been removed, and it was entitled “The bit about the town square advertisement for guitar lessons is brilliant.”According to The Hollywood Reporter, Corden issued an apology. Nevertheless, he stated in a different interview that the story was exaggerated beyond all proportion. And when a Twitter user asked Gervais why he deleted his tweet, he responded, “Started to feel sorry for him.” [Citation needed]
2. Melania Trump
ɑccᴜsеd of: copying Michelle Obama’s speech
It’s possible that there isn’t a more well-known instance of political plagiarism than Melania Trump’s speech at the Republican National Convention in 2016, but it’s certainly one of the most notable. When the two speeches are compared side by side, it is clear that at least some of the words spoken by the former first lady of the United States were taken from the convention speech given by her predecessor, Michelle Obama, in 2008.
There is no doubt that the two speeches share many similarities, even though the two former first ladies may not have used the exact same words in their respective addresses.
According to the BBC, the Trump campaign denied the allegations, claiming that Melania Trump, who is 52 years old, had used “common words” and that there was “no cribbing of Michelle Obama’s speech.”
3. Khloé Kardashian
ɑccᴜsеd of: ripping off a local fashion brand
Destiney Bleu, a fashion designer based in Los Angeles, made the allegations in 2017 that fellow designer Khloé Kardashian and her clothing company, Good American, had stolen designs from Bleu’s own fashion line, DBleudazzled. According to Teen Vogue, Bleu’s designs had previously been worn by celebrities such as Beyoncé, Kylie Jenner, and Lady Gaga in the past.
By way of response, Bleu took to Twitter, where she retweeted a promotional video for the KUWTK star’s Good American brand and pointed out the apparent similarities between the two brands’ designs. “When someone buys one of everything on your site, has you make them custom @dbleudazzled work, but never posts it or wears it, then copies it,” she wrote in the email. “When someone buys one of everything on your site.”
According to RadarOnline, the dispute was taken to court by Dbleudazzled in May of 2020, when the company filed a lawsuit against Kim Kardashian, who was 38 years old at the time, as well as her clothing brand. According to reports, the lawsuit ɑccᴜsеd Good American of stеaling sparkling jumpsuit designs and demanded US$10 million in compensation from the company. According to the same source, approximately one year after the initial filing, an out-of-court settlement was reached, and the lawsuit was ultimately dismissed.
4. Hailey Bieber
ɑccᴜsеd of: plagiarising a quote on social media
In 2016, Hailey Bieber (then Baldwin) posted an image on Instagram that contained motivational words that seemed to comment on some online drаmа involving Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez, and Sofia Richie. However, she was quickly ɑccᴜsеd of ripping off author Melissa Molomo’s quotes without giving credit where credit was due.
According to the reports that came out of the British media, the author allegedly sent the woman who would later become Justin Bieber’s wife a letter demanding an apology and requesting that the celebrity stop using the author’s work without properly attributing its source.
In the legal demand, it was stated that “by copying and using Ms. Molomo’s work without permission, [Hailey Bieber] took credit and caused confusion as to who the original author of this work is.” In addition to this, it was mentioned that the model, who is 26 years old, might be “liable for damages up to $150,000 USD.”In the end, Bieber removed the post, and there has been no further word regarding any potential legal action.
5. Taylor Swift
ɑccᴜsеd of: stеaling the Folklore logo
Pop star Taylor Swift was ɑccᴜsеd of stеaling the logo for the album’s merchandise from a company called The Folklore when she released her album in 2020 titled “Folklore.”
Amira Rasool, founder and CEO of The Folklore, called out “Shake It Off” singer Taylor Swift on her company’s Instagram account. The Folklore is a black-owned business. Rasool commented on a post in which she displayed side-by-side images of her designs and merchandise bearing Swift’s Folklore brand, stating, “I believe the designer of the merch ripped off my company’s logo.” My goal in telling my story is to shed light on the disturbing trend of large companies and celebrities ripping off the work of small business owners who are members of underrepresented minorities. This brazen act of tҺeft is not going to go unpunished by me in any way.
According to Good Morning America on ABC, Taylor Swift, 32, and her team released a statement that the designs would be updated to remove any correlation to The Folklore brand. They responded very quickly.
6. Chris Brown and Drake
ɑccᴜsеd of: copyright infringement
After Drake and Chris Brown worked together on the song “No Guidance” in 2019, the pair of rappers were soon ɑccᴜsеd of ripping off the song “I Love Your Dress” by two musicians who are not as well-known as Brandon Cooper and Timothy Valentine, according to a report that TMZ published in 2021.
According to Billboard, Cooper and Valentine have filed a lawsuit against Brown, 33, and Drake, 36, for copyright infringement. The lawsuit alleges that the songs in question are similar and that both artists used the phrase “you got it” as the lyrical hook.
According to the same source, the case was eventually settled out of court after the parties engaged in some legal back-and-forth with one another, during which Drake’s participation in the lawsuit was terminated earlier this year.