A California federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit against Lizzo over her hit song "Truth Hurts." Lizzo first sued songwriters Justin and Jeremiah Raisen after they accused her of plagiarism, claiming that the famous "100% that bitch" line came from a demo stemming from an April 2017 writing session with them. The Raisens then filed a countersuit seeking credit and royalties.
Yesterday, according to The Hollywood Reporter, U.S. District Judge Dolly M. Gee granted Lizzo's motion to dismiss the Raisens' counterclaims, ruling that a "joint author of one copyrightable work does not automatically gain ownership of a derivative work."
"The Court can determine that Counterclaimants allege that the parties collaborated on, and finalized, one song -- 'Healthy -- before Lizzo allegedly copied portions of that song to make 'Truth Hurts,'" Gee writes. "As a matter of law, therefore, even if Counterclaimants are co-authors of 'Healthy,' they have not alleged any ownership interest in Truth Hurts, which they claim is a derivative work of Healthy."
Lizzo maintains that the "that bitch" line was inspired by a meme she saw on Instagram. She later awarded a songwriting credit to Twitter user Mina Lioness, who used the phrase in a viral tweet that inspired the meme.
