Miley Cyrus is facing a lawsuit over her Grammy-winning song Flowers, with allegations that it unlawfully copies elements of Bruno Mars’ hit song.
Miley Cyrus is facing a copyright infringement lawsuit over her 2023 chart-topping hit Flowers.
The 31-year-old singer has been accused of copying Bruno Mars’ 2013 hit When I Was Your Man, which also reached the top of the charts. However, the lawsuit was filed by Tempo Music Investments, not Mars himself, as reported by Newsafro.com on Monday.
Newsafro.com has contacted representatives for both Miley Cyrus and Bruno Mars, seeking their comments regarding the lawsuit.In the legal filing, Tempo Music accuses Cyrus of “intentionally copying” When I Was Your Man in her song Flowers, citing significant similarities between the two tracks.
The lawsuit filed by Tempo Music alleges that Miley Cyrus’ Flowers shares a similar melody and harmonies with Bruno Mars’ When I Was Your Man, particularly in the verses and chorus.
The investment company claims that the chord progressions in Flowers—co-written by Cyrus, Aldae (Gregory Hein), and Michael Pollack—bear resemblance to those in Mars’ song, which was written by Mars, Philip Lawrence, Ari Levin, and Andrew Wyatt. Additionally, it argues that certain lyrics in Flowers are similar to those in When I Was Your Man.
Tempo Music asserts in its lawsuit that “it is undeniable, based on the combination and number of similarities between the two recordings, that Flowers would not exist without When I Was Your Man.”
Both Flowers and When I Was Your Man were chart-topping hits for their respective artists, each reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100. While When I Was Your Man was nominated for Best Pop Solo Performance at the 2014 Grammy Awards, Flowers achieved greater success, winning Record of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance at the Grammys. However, Flowers lost out on Song of the Year, despite being nominated.
In its lawsuit, Tempo Music alleges that Miley Cyrus, her producers Kid Harpoon and Tyler Harper, and her record label all had access to When I Was Your Man. The firm claims that given the widespread popularity of Mars’ song, which has remained easily accessible via streaming and physical media since its 2013 release, this access influenced Flowers.
Tempo Music is seeking damages from Cyrus, though it has not yet specified an amount. More significantly, it is requesting that she and her label be barred from distributing Flowers. This could involve removing the song from digital platforms and future physical versions of her 2023 album Endless Summer Vacation. The firm is also seeking to prevent Cyrus from performing the song in the future.
Rather than Mars himself, Tempo Music filed the lawsuit after reportedly acquiring part of the song’s copyright. In May 2021, it was reported that Bruno Mars sold a portion of his song catalog to Warner Music Group six months earlier. While Mars (real name: Peter Hernandez) retained majority ownership of his catalog, the transaction likely led to Tempo Music controlling part of When I Was Your Man.
Tempo Music was formed as part of a joint $650 million investment by Warner Music Group and Providence Equity Partners in late 2019, as reported by Variety.
Tempo Music was created to invest in artists’ catalogs, acquiring both master recordings and publishing rights. In recent years, it has become increasingly common for artists to sell portions or entire catalogs to investment firms like Tempo or its more established competitor, Hipgnosis Songs Fund.
This trend offers significant financial paydays for artists, particularly those nearing the end of their careers, such as Neil Young, Bruce Springsteen, and Bob Dylan, while the firms profit from song royalties.
It’s less typical for younger artists like Bruno Mars to sell parts of their catalogs, though Mars opted to sell only a portion of his.
