Marshmello Demands 'Happier' Lawsuit Be Thrown Out
Marshmello is firing back at a lawsuit accusing him of ripping off another musician.
According to court documents obtained by The Blast, Marshmello denies all allegations of wrongdoing in the case brought by Artem Stoliarov aka Arty.
Back in May, Artem Stoliarov aka Arty sued Marshmello and Universal Music. He accused Marshmello of ripping off him off with the mega hit “Happier.”
In the suit, Arty says he released a remix of One Republic’s “I Lived” in 2014. Marshmello then dropped a track “Happier” in 2018.
Arty accuses Marshmello of ripping off his remix, claiming “Happier” is a direct knock-off. He pointed to the four-bar synthesizer. He sued seeking unspecified damages. He also claimed to be acquaintances with Marshmello and performed at the same festivals.
In newly filed court documents, Marshmello states, “This lawsuit is an exercise in futility. Plaintiff Artem Stoliarov p/k/a Arty (“Plaintiff ”) has sued 10 different defendants for copyright infringement based on their supposedly unauthorized use of the musical composition “I Lived (Arty Remix)” (the “Remix Composition”), which he describes as an “authorized derivative work” of the musical composition “I Lived” (the “Original Composition”) by the musical group One Republic.
He continues, "Yet, in obtaining permission to create the Remix Composition five years ago, Plaintiff signed a Remixer Declaration in which he not only expressly disclaimed any “ownership or financial interest” in the Remix Composition, but he also agreed not to “make any claims to the contrary.”
Further, “the 2014 commercially released recording of the Remix Composition and the 2014 video embodying this recording credit the writers of the Original Composition, not Plaintiff, as the writers of the Remix Composition.”
He adds, “Any alleged use in the Happier Composition and the Happier Recording of any musical elements from the Remix Composition is a fair use and not actionable as a matter of law.”
Marshmello argues Arty doesn’t have the rights to the remix. He is demanding the entire lawsuit be thrown out immediately.
