Obiter rocked up to the Rolls Building to hear a copyright row involving Ed Sheeran but wasn’t expecting to see the music megastar himself. 

Sheeran was sat in the back row of court 15 for the start of a High Court battle involving musicians Sami Chokri and Ross O’Donoghue over his song, Shape of You.

‘I cannot claim knowledge of all the musical terms, but my understanding is Shape of You is a long way from grime,’ said Mr Justice Zacaroli. ‘The hook is very different from the rest of the song. We’re not concerned with Shape of You the whole song, we’re concerned with the hook,’ the respondents’ legal team explained.

Ed Sheeran pictured on the Brit Awards red carpet, O2 Arena, 2022

Sheeran's hit is 'a long way from grime', Mr Justice Zacaroli observed

Source: Matt Baron/Shutterstock

The judge was told at the outset that the ‘issue at the heart of this case is how does Ed Sheeran write his music’.

Counsel for Sheeran and the song’s co-writers, John McDaid and Steven McCutcheon, said it was ‘completely inconceivable’ for more than one person to subconsciously copy something.

The judge was invited to visit Sheeran's studio, where he would see how the computer systems are set up and 'get a feel of the environment in which the songs are written'. He declined the offer saying 'as fascinating as it may be, I do not think it would be necessary'.

Photographers were camped outside the Rolls Building to snap Sheeran, who was dressed in suit and tie today. Sheeran will give evidence during the hearing, which is expected to last three weeks. In the meantime, Obiter’s off to familiarise itself with some grime music.

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