Composer Lee Jong-hoon, who composed singer and actor IU's song 'Bippi', announced his position regarding the plagiarism complaint.
On the 11th, composer Lee Jong-hoon began by saying, “I came across an article saying that a plagiarism complaint had been filed against the song ‘Bippi’ that I composed.”
He said, "I cannot help but regret that I chose the wrong target for plagiarism accusation in the first place. Copyright (intellectual property rights) is the domain of the composer, not the singer. Even if a complaint or accusation is filed, it is appropriate for me, the composer, to do so. “He said.
He added, "Secondly, plagiarism is a crime of accusation, so a complaint or accusation by a third party has no legal effect. This clearly shows that this is probably just an intention to tarnish the artist and is not intended to result in any legal consequences."
Composer Lee Jong-hoon said, "I did not plagiarize any other work while working on 'Bippi'," and added, "After listening to 'several' songs that 'claimed' to be similar in YouTube stitching videos, I found them to be in the music genre of hip-hop/r&b. “Excluding characteristics, we were able to confirm differentiation and individuality in many aspects, such as chord progression, song structure, and arrangement of instruments,” he said emphatically.
He also said, “I tried to check the contents of the complaint to understand the exact situation, but I was informed that it was difficult to confirm the details of the complaint because even Edam Entertainment had not yet obtained the right to view the complaint.”
Composer Lee Jong-hoon said, "If there are any parts that require my explanation in the future, I will do so without hesitation, and I will do everything I can to correct this type of criticism and misunderstanding, even if it means resorting to legal procedures." He added, "This is not only a firm will to preserve the meaning of my creations, but also to further Furthermore, I would like to inform you that this is to improve the creative environment of existing artists in a slightly more desirable direction.”
It was previously reported that IU was accused of plagiarism. Maeil Business Newspaper reported that a member of the public, Mr. A, reported IU to the Gangnam Police Station in Seoul on the 8th for violating copyright law.
Part of Mr. A's complaint states, "In many cases, the songs in question are identical to the original work in terms of melody, rhythm, and chord progression. In particular, in the case of 'Good Day' and 'Pink Shoes,' they have significant similarities that can be easily heard by the general public." “All six songs are suspected of plagiarism in the introduction, which is the part that brings out the mood and identity of the music, arouses curiosity in the audience, and determines whether or not to listen to the song,” it says.
IU's songs that were subject to accusations are a total of 6 songs: 'Pink Shoes', 'Good Day', 'Beep Bibi', 'Pity', 'Boo', and 'Celebrity'. IU participated in composing ‘Celebrity’ and producing ‘Bippi’. When 'Pink Shoes' was released in 2013, controversy arose as it was said to have many similarities to 'Here's us' by German band Nekta.
In relation to this, IU's agency, DEAM Entertainment, said, "We have not been officially contacted by the investigative agency at this time, and we first became aware of the accusation through an article. We have not confirmed the contents of the accusation mentioned in the media, and we are aware of the contents. “I will give it to you,” he said.
The agency said, “We emphasize that defaming an artist with malicious content as if groundless false information were fact is a clear illegal act and is subject to strong legal action. “We plan to take strong legal action without leniency if a person commits a crime by repeatedly posting malicious posts, such as defamation of character or defamation, or reproduces false information.”The following is the full statement of composer Lee Jong-hoon, who composed IU's song 'Bippi'.
Hello, this is composer Lee Jong-hoon.
I came across an article saying that a plagiarism complaint had been filed against the song I composed, ‘Beep Bibi’.
First of all, I cannot help but regret that I chose the wrong target for accusing me of plagiarism. Copyright (intellectual property rights) is the domain of the composer, not the singer. Even if you sue or file a complaint, it is appropriate for me, the composer, to do so.
Secondly, plagiarism is a crime of accusation, so a complaint or accusation by a third party has no legal effect. This clearly shows that it is only an intention to disparage the artist and is not intended to result in any legal consequences.
Lastly, I did not plagiarize any other work while working on ‘Bippi’.
As a result of listening to 'several' songs that 'claimed' to be similar in YouTube stitching videos, apart from the characteristics of the music genre of hip-hop/r&b, they were rather similar in many aspects such as chord progression, song structure, and arrangement of instruments. We were able to confirm differentiation and individuality.
We tried to check the contents of the complaint to understand the exact situation, but we were told that it was difficult to confirm the details of the complaint because even Edam Entertainment had not yet obtained the right to view the complaint.
If there is anything that requires my explanation in the future, I will do so without any hesitation, and I will do my best to correct this type of selling and misunderstanding, even if it means resorting to legal procedures.
I would like to inform you that this is not only a firm determination to preserve the meaning of my creations, but also to improve the creative environment for existing artists in a slightly more desirable direction.
thank you
Kang Min-kyung, Ten Asia reporter kkk39@tenasia.co.kr