Taylor Swift Fans Respond To Judge’s Ruling In ‘Shake It Off’ Lawsuit

Although Taylor Swift might have some “Bad Blood” with a lawsuit dating back to 2017, her fans have her back!

Swift has been accused of plagiarizing the lyrics of her 2014 song “Shake It Off” from her “1989” album. The lawsuit was filed in 2017 by Sean Hall and Nathan Butler, who wrote the track “Playas Gon’ Play” in 2001.

The lyrics of “Playas Gon’ Play,” which was performed by the group 3LW, read “Playas, they gonna play, and haters, they gonna hate.” Whereas Swift’s modern bop features the lyrics, “’Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play, and the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate.”

On December 9, 2021, United States District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald refused to dismiss the lawsuit against Swift. Instead, he said that the case would go to a jury to decide if Swift plagiarized the song.

“Even though there are some noticeable differences between the works, there are also significant similarities in the word usage and sequence/structure,” Fitzgerald said to defend his decision.

Although Swift’s attorneys have asked the judge to reconsider his initial ruling, fans of the “I Bet You Think About Me” singer had their own thoughts on the ruling.

“I think those writers are just trying to get as much money as possible...” one fan wrote. “Especially over those common phrases used in MANY songs.”

“It’s literally 3 words,” another noted. “‘Haters gonna hate’ was very used in 90s hip hop. It’s not like those writers were geniuses.”

“I was watching a tv show the other day and someone said ‘haters gonna hate,’” another mentioned. “Why are these people not suing that tv show?”

“It has a totally different rhythm and melody,” another pointed out. “I don’t see how they can take that lawsuit seriously.”

“If this was the case in real life, Oxford dictionaries will be suing every single person for using its words,” another joked.

“Taylor Swift has been writing music for other artists most of her life,” another fan wrote. “She's an incredible songwriter, musician, artist, philanthropist, and person. She doesn't deserve this problem. Taylor, stay strong, you'll get thru this. Free Taylor from uncalled-for lawsuits.”

“See, my point is, when you were young and you went to school to study, and you learn stuff,” another wrote. “Those stuff you use later in life at some points whether it be work or anything. And here, the phrase ‘haters gonna hate’ is something that we all eventually learn as we all grow up.”

“We only see the lawsuits, but can you imagine all the artists out there supporting each other and letting songs do their thing, despite the similarities?” another asked. “I like artists who are in the industry for the music and not for the money...”

“Copyright claims and lawsuits are a good thing to protect the original creator,” another wrote. “And if Taylor had done something wrong then that's something she needs to put right. But this seems to be a bit of a weak case, it feels a bit like a money grab.”

Another fan commented with Swift’s own lyrics: “I swear I don't love drama, it loves me.”