International Singer/Songwriter Lenka Takes Legal Action Against Viral Song "Selos” by Shaira due to Alleged Copyright Claims

Photo from Lenka's Instagram

• Overnight sensation "Selos” by Shaira, taken down from all streaming platforms following legal action taken by international artist Lenka along with her team due to copyright claims. 

• The song Selos became famous and viral across social media, specifically in TikTok, that made netizens notice the similarities between Selos and Trouble is a Friend by Australian singer-songwriter, Lenka. 

• In general, as artists, music producers, and end users, it is important to understand Intellectual Property and music licensing. 

Image: Screenshot of Inquirers screengrab From Instagram/@lenkamusic 

On March 19, 2024, the overnight hit song, “Selos” by Shaira, was removed from streaming sites following alleged breach of copyright. The said song garnered thousands of views virtually overnight, going viral and thrusting those who have listened to dub her as the "Queen of Bangsamoro Pop.”  The song was later-on linked by netizens to an uncannily similar, pre-existing song of Australian singer-songwriter Lenka's “Trouble is a Friend.” Because of this, TikTok user “franz.onz” brought it up to Lenka by tagging her Instagram page.  

Lenka and her team, Epic Records, have taken legal action to address the issue. As a result, AHS records, the management team behind Shaira, confirmed that they will secure a cover license for the song. Moreover, they expressed their gratitude to the fans for supporting their song, urging Shaira's fan base to anticipate their upcoming releases.  

 To read more about the full story of Shaira's "Selos,” view inquirer's full story titled: “Shaira Moroto turn ‘Selos’ into 'official cover’ as Lenka takes legal action”! 

What is Intellectual Property and its application in Music 

Of the many things that can be discussed in the news article, the matter of Intellectual Property and its protection arises as the most prevalent. To fully understand how this applies to the case of "Selos", we must first properly define Intellectual Property. 

According to the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHIL), Intellectual Property “refers to creations of the mind: inventions; literary and artistic works; and symbols, names, and images used in commerce.” In music, any song or sound recording belongs to 3 parties; the songwriter, the producer, and performer. Thus, proper licenses must be secured to give credit to the rightful owners of the music. In the case of Selos and Trouble is a Friend, in terms of composition, the chord progressions used in the respective choruses of both songs along with the melodic line are eerily similar. Ideally, proper licenses should have been secured from Music Licensing Companies (MLC) by Shaira and/or her team prior to releasing their song. Licenses enable those who procure it to use copyrighted material depending on the music usage. In the case of "Selos", a Mechanical License, commonly used for reproduction and redistribution of copyrighted material through cover songs, should have been obtained prior to the release of Shaira's single. There are diverse types of music licenses such as Synchronization Licenses for the use of copyrighted music in visual media and Public Performance License for public use of copyrighted music, to name a few. These licenses can be secured from Music Licensing Companies, otherwise known as Collective Management Organizations (CMO), which oversee proper execution of the licenses. As an example, in the Philippines, any business utilizing sound recorded music for public performance purposes would need to coordinate with Philippines Recorded Music Rights Inc. (PRM) and secure public performance license. 

PRM as a Music Licensing Company 

PRM is a Music Licensing Company representing artists and producers, such as Lenka being under Epic Records, a subsidiary of Sony Records. In general, the goal of the organization is to protect music and to give credit where credit is due.  

As end users of music, it is important to be informed about intellectual property to avoid situations like in the case of Selos. It is ideal that we, as patrons of music, have ample knowledge of the fair use of copyrighted material before publishing online (or anywhere for that matter, especially for income generating purposes). By creating awareness and educating people of the importance of music, we can create more value and care for music and its co-contributors; the more we continue to give credit to the rightful owners of songs and sound recordings, the more we incentivize artists to create more quality music.  

To learn more about music copyright, contact PRM through info@prm.com.ph.