A Brazilian judge has ordered the global removal of Adele’s song “Million Years Ago” due to a plagiarism complaint.
Composer Toninho Geraes claims that Adele’s 2015 song “Million Years Ago” copied music from the samba classic, “Mulheres,” popularized by Martinho Da Vila.
As a result, a Brazilian judge on Friday ordered the worldwide removal of the singer’s title.
The injunction, confirmed Monday, threatens the Brazilian subsidiaries of Sony and Universal, Adele’s labels, with a fine of 50,000 reais (around 7,800 euros), prohibiting them from “using, reproducing, editing, distributing or commercializing” this title “at the global level” and “in any medium”.
A controversial title
In the complaint for plagiarism currently being analyzed by a court in Rio de Janeiro, Toninho Geraes’ defense is demanding, among other things, one million reais (around 156,000 euros) in damages. However, record companies can still appeal the decision.
“This is a turning point for Brazilian music, which (…) has often been copied to compose hits with international successes,” declared Fredimio Trotta, Toninho Geraes’ lawyer, quoted by AFP. “International producers and artists who… have Brazilian music ‘on their radar’ for possible parasitic use will think twice, given this decision,” he added.
For the record, this is not the first time that the song “Million Years Ago” has been accused of plagiarism. Internet users had noted similarities with the tune of the title “Acilara tutunmak”, by Kurdish singer Ahmet Kaya, who died in 2000.
