The British singer spent days testifying in court with his guitar, playing demos to argue that his 2014 hit "Thinking Out Loud" did not unlawfully copy the intellectual property of Motown legend Marvin Gaye. A federal jury in New York concluded on Thursday that Ed Sheeran's 2014 hit "Thinking Out Loud" did not unlawfully copy from Marvin Gaye's classic 1973 song "Let's Get It On." The civil lawsuit was filed by the heirs of Gaye co-writer Ed Townsend, who alleged that harmonic progressions and rhythmic elements of Sheeran's song were lifted without permission. They sought a share of the profits from Sheeran's hit "It is devastating and also insulting to be accused of stealing other people's songs when we put so much into our livelihoods," Sheeran told reporters outside the court in Manhattan. "I am just a guy with a guitar who loves writing music for people to enjoy. I am not and will never allow myself to be a piggy bank for anyone to shake." What was the case about? Lawyers for Gaye's estate argued that "Thinking Out Loud" had so many similarities to "Let's Get It On" that it violated the song's copyright protection. They pointed to a video of a concert in Switzerland where Sheeran can be heard singing both songs on stage, and said this footage was "smoking gun" proof that he stole the tune. Sheeran, who co-wrote "Thinking Out Loud" with singer-songwriter Amy Wadge, spent days testifying in court with his guitar with him. He played demos for the court to argue that the 1-3-4-5 chord progression in question was a basic building block of pop music that cannot be owned, "in the same way nobody owns the color blue." Sheeran claims victory for 'creative freedom' In 2015, Gaye's family — who were not involved in the "Thinking Out Loud" case — successfully sued artists Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams over similarities between the song "Blurred Lines" and Gaye's "Got to Give it Up." Last year, Sheeran won a copyright battle in the United Kingdom over his 2017 song "Shape of You." "If the jury had decided this matter the other way, we might as well say goodbye to the creative freedom of songwriters," Sheeran said after his victory on Thursday. Kathryn Townsend Griffen, the daughter of the "Let's Get It On" co-writer who brought the lawsuit against Sheeran, said the case was not personal. "I did what I had to do to protect my father's intellectual property," she said after the verdict. "I'm very proud of my father and his work and me doing what I have to do."

Moonbin, a 25-year-old member of the boy band Astro as well as its splinter duo Moonbin & Sanha, was found dead in his apartment in Seoul. The cause of death is not yet known. K-pop star Moon Bin, known professionally as Moonbin, a member of the South Korean boy group Astro, died Wednesday at the age of 25, his music label, Fantagio, announced. "On April 19, Astro member Moon Bin unexpectedly left our world and became a star in the sky," said a statement posted in Korean early Thursday morning on Fantagio's official Twitter page. Local media, citing the police, reported that Moonbin had been found unresponsive on Wednesday evening in his apartment in the upscale Gangnam neighborhood of Seoul.  It did not provide any suspected cause of death. A founding member of Astro The label's statement asked that everyone "refrain from speculative and malicious reports" so that his family can pay their respects and honor him in peace. Moon Bin was a member of the group Astro and also performed with a sub-group called Moonbin & Sanha. He joined the Fantagio label's trainee program at an early age and debuted with Astro in February 2016, which at the time had six members. Several other young K-pop stars have died in recent years, including two suspected suicides over one month in 2019. The two women, who were close friends, had been the subject of intense online bullying.

The composer behind hits such as "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My head" has passed away at his LA home. Oscar-winning composer Burt Bacharach died on Wednesday in his Los Angeles home, publicist Tina Brausam said on Thursday. The author of songs such as "Do You Know the Way to San Jose" and "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" reportedly died of natural causes with his family by his side. "He was just different," long-time collaborator and lyricist Hal David once told an interviewer. "Innovative, original. His music spoke to me. I'd hear his melodies and I'd hear lyrics. I'd hear rhymes, I'd hear thoughts and I'd hear it almost immediately." Bacharach had a run of 30 top 40 hits during the '60s, but his entire opus spans some 500 songs that have been recorded by over 1,200 different artists. He worked with big names such as Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin, Dusty Springfield, and Tom Jones.  Other big names such as Elvis Presley, the Beatles, and Frank Sinatra covered his songs while recent artists such as the White Stripes, Twista, and Ashanti have also sampled his music. Bacharach's life Bacharach was born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1928, but moved with his family to New York where he learned to play the piano, encouraged by his mother, herself a pianist. He later gained a spot at the music conservatory at McGill University in Montreal. He was in the US Army from 1950 to 1952 but played piano in officers' clubs in the US instead of being deployed to Korea. It was his collaboration with Hal David that brought the duo big successes. He became an eight-time Grammy winner as well as winning awards for his Broadway compositions and won three Oscars — including for the score for "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" in 1970. However, he fell out with David in 1973 over a financial dispute and the two never worked together again. The two eventually reconciled and when David died in 2012, Bacharach said of him that he wrote lyrics "like a miniature movie." Various US presidents, both Democrat and Republican, invited Bacharach to the White House. In 2012, then-President Barack Obama presented him with the Gershwin Prize. Obama had famously sung a few seconds of Bacharach's song "Walk on By" during a campaign appearance. He vowed never to retire and to keep making music in the belief that a good song can make a difference. "Music softens the heart, makes you feel something if it's good, brings in emotion that you might not have felt before," Bacharach told the Associated Press in 2018. Married four times, Bacharach is survived by his wife Jane Hansen and children Oliver, Raleigh, and Cristopher.

The pop superstar has won 32 Grammy awards throughout her career. Meanwhile, Viola Davis has become one of few artists to have won all four top arts awards: Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony. Pop superstar Beyonce made Grammys history on Sunday as the artist with the most career wins at the music awards ceremony. The singer won on Sunday Grammys for best dance-electronic music recording with "Break My Soul," best traditional R&B performance with "Plastic Off The Sofa" and best R&B song for "Cuff It." She has now won 32 Grammys throughout her career. The record was previously held by Hungarian-British conductor Georg Solti, who has 31 Grammys, since 1997. Beyonce already holds the title of most Grammys won by a female artist. Viola Davis achieves EGOT status Another big winner for the night was actor Viola Davis, who has become the latest star to earn a coveted EGOT — a combination of an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony. Davis completed her EGOT status by winning the Grammy for best audio book, narration and storytelling for her memoir "Finding Me." "I wrote this book to honor the 6-year-old Viola, to honor her, to honor her life, her joy, her trauma, her everything," the actor said as she accepted her award. Davis is the third Black woman to achieve EGOT status, and the 18th person overall. Album of the year: Harry's House With his album "Harry's House," British singer Harry Styles won the night's top gong: album of the year. He came out atop some of the biggest names in music from pop, rap, rock and R&B, including Beyonce, Adele and Kendrick Lamar.  "This doesn't happen to people like me very often, and this is so nice," he said onstage. Other winners in this year's Grammy Awards included Lizzo, who received the record of the year title for her single "About Damn Time."  US jazz singer Samara Joy was awarded as best new artist, while Sam Smith and Kim Petras won best pop duo-group performance for their song "Unholy."  Cologne-born Petras said Smith wanted Petras to make the acceptance speech because "I'm the first transgender woman to win this award."

Davis has become one of few artists to have won all four top arts awards: Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony. Meanwhile, Beyonce could break the record for the most Grammys won by an artist. Actor Viola Davis has become the latest star to earn a coveted EGOT — a combination of an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony — at the Grammy Awards on Sunday. Davis completed her EGOT status by winning the Grammy for best audio book, narration and storytelling for her memoir "Finding Me." "I wrote this book to honor the 6-year-old Viola, to honor her, to honor her life, her joy, her trauma, her everything," the actor said as she accepted her award. Davis is the third Black woman to achieve EGOT status, and the 18th person overall. Beyonce poised to sweep Grammys Pop superstar Beyonce has so far won three Grammys during the ceremony on Sunday. The singer won the Grammy for best dance-electronic music recording with "Break My Soul," and also won for best traditional R&B performance with "Plastic Off The Sofa." During the televised ceremony, Beyonce then won best R&B song with "Cuff It." She has now won 31 Grammys throughout her career. With six more nominations on top of those three wins — including for album, song and record of the year — Beyonce is on track to become the most-awarded artist in Grammys history. That record has been held by Hungarian-British conductor Georg Solti, who has 31 Grammys, since 1997. Beyonce already holds the title of most Grammys won by a female artist. Who is nominated for album of the Year? Beyonce's house-inspired album Renaissance has been nominated for the night's top gong: album of the year. She is up against some of the biggest names in music from pop, rap, rock and R&B. They include ABBA with "Voyage," Adele's album "30," "Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers" by Kendrick Lamar and "Harry's House" by Harry Styles. Meanwhile, Puerto Rican rapper has been nominated with "Un Verano Sin Ti," as has Mary J Blige with "Good Morning Gorgeous (Deluxe)," Brandi Carlile with "In These SIlent Days," Coldplay with "Music of the Spheres" and Lizzo with "Special."

The singer was rushed to a hospital hours before her death. She had attended the Golden Globes ceremony on Tuesday to celebrate Austin Butler's award for playing her father in the film Elvis. Lisa Marie Presley — the only child of Elvis Presley — has died on Thursday, hours after she was hospitalized. She was 54. Presley was a singer-songwriter in her own right and also contributed to several charitable causes. "It is with a heavy heart that I must share the devastating news that my beautiful daughter Lisa Marie has left us," her mother, Priscilla Presley, said in a statement. "She was the most passionate, strong and loving woman I have ever known." Presley rushed to hospital American media outlets reported that Presley suffered heart failure. A spokesperson for Los Angeles emergency services said paramedics were dispatched to Presley's Calabasas home on Thursday morning following a report of a woman in cardiac arrest. Paramedics then performed CPR and "determined the patient had signs of life" before rushing her to the hospital. Stars pay tribute Tom Hanks, who stared in the recent biopic film Elvis, and his wife Rita Wilson said, "Our hearts are broken with the sudden and shocking passing of Lisa Marie Presley tonight.... It's too much." Actor John Travolta said on Instagram: "Lisa baby girl, I'm so sorry. I'll miss you but I know I'll see you again." "How heartbreaking, I hope she is at peace in her dad's arms," singer LeAnn Rimes tweeted. "My heart goes out to her family. Too much grief in just a couple of years." A life in the spotlight Presley's birth in 1968 was international news, and she was known to share her father's brooding charisma and sultry voice. Elvis passed away in 1977, when she was just 9 years old. The singer went on to release her own rock albums in the 2000s and appeared on stage alongside greats including Pat Benatar and Richard Hawley. Presley's private life also generated attention — her four husbands included Michael Jackson and Nicolas Cage. More recently, Presley attended the Golden Globes on Tuesday to celebrate Austin Butler's award for playing her father in the film Elvis. "I had to take, like, five days to process it because it was so incredible and so spot on and just so authentic that, yeah, I can't even describe what it meant," she told ET. Presley leaves behind a son and twin daughters. Another son, Benjamin Keough, died by suicide in 2020 aged 27.

Beck is often described as one of the greatest guitar players of all time. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice. Guitar legend Jeff Beck has died at 78, his representatives said Wednesday in a statement. The statement said Beck passed away Tuesday after "suddenly contracting bacterial meningitis." "On behalf of his family, it is with deep and profound sadness that we share the news of Jeff Beck's passing," the statement said.  "After suddenly contracting bacterial meningitis, he peacefully passed away yesterday," the statement added. "His family asks for privacy while they process this tremendous loss."   Beck's style was influenced by a variety of genres, including rock, blues and jazz fusion. He played the Fender Stratocaster without a plectrum, with his style also incorporating the whammy bar and harmonics.  From The Yardbirds to The Jeff Beck Group  Beck's first foray into stardom began with English rock band The Yardbirds. The band experimented with new sounds during the psychedelic era of the 1960s, bringing Middle Eastern and Indian influences into the mix.  In the mid-1960s, the Yardbirds not only included Beck in their lineup, but also Jimmy Page, who would go on to perform in the rock phenomenon Led Zeppelin.  Beck later went on to a successful solo career, collaborating with other artists and forming the Jeff Beck Group.  He is widely considered to be one of the greatest electric guitar players to ever grace the stage. Beck was inducted into the Rock and Rock Hall of Fame twice, both for his work in The Yardbirds and his solo career.   He won eight Grammy awards during his career from 22 nominations, with US pop culture magazine Rolling Stone ranking him as the fifth greatest guitarist of all time.   Music world mourns Musicians mourned Beck's death and shared their memories of the legendary guitarist on social media. "The six stringed Warrior is no longer here for us to admire the spell he could weave around our mortal emotions. Jeff I will miss you along with your millions of fans,'' Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page, who was also a Yardbirds bandmate and close friend of Beck, wrote on Instagram. "With the death of Jeff Beck we have lost a wonderful man and one of the greatest guitar players in the world. We will all miss him so much," The Rolling Stones' Mick Jagger wrote on Twitter. "Jeff was such a nice person and an outstanding iconic, genius guitar player, there will never be another Jeff Beck. His playing was very special & distinctively brilliant!" Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi wrote on Twitter.