Avril Ripped for Allegedly Ripping Off "Girlfriend"

Posted Jul 6th 2007 3:06PM by TMZ Staff

Avril Lavigne has gotten herself into a deeply complicated mess, with two '70s songwriters claiming that she stole their song for her hit single "Girlfriend."
Click to hear!
In a lawsuit filed in US District Court in Northern California, songwriters Tommy Dunbar and James Gangwer allege that "Girlfriend" rips off their 1979 song, "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend," originally performed by The Rubinoos, whose previous claim to fame was penning the theme to "Revenge of the Nerds." Veteran music critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote on Billboard.com that "Girlfriend" was "a total lift" from "Boyfriend."
Click to hear!
Lavigne's manager tells the AP that the claim is baseless and that he hired a musicologist to study the two tracks -- and that they've been deemed "completely different songs." Decide for yourself below ...

UPDATE: Tommy Dunbar and James Gangwer, the songwriters who recently brought a legal action against Avril Lavigne and Dr. Luke that claimed that the hit Lavigne/Dr. Luke song "Girlfriend" infringed the copyright in their 1979 song "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend," have issued the following statement: "We are satisfied that any similarities between the two songs resulted from Avril and Luke's use of certain common and widely used lyrics. We therefore completely exonerate Avril and Luke from any wrongdoing of any kind in connection with the claims made by us in our lawsuit."

Listen and Decide

"Girlfriend" versus "Boyfriend"



UPDATE (5:45PM ET): Lawyers for Tommy Dunbar and James Gangwer tell TMZ they too consulted a musicologist that fully supports their claims, finding that the songs have an unusually high degree of similarity. Dunbar says, "Once a jury is exposed to the undeniable fact that her song and our song share the same musical DNA, we're confident that it will conclude that Avril would never have had her hit 'Girlfriend' if the Rubinoos hadn't first recorded our song 'I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend.'"



Filed under: Celebrity Justice, Music

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(Page 1 of 16) | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Most Recent | Next 15 Comments

1. Sounds a lot a like to me!

Posted at 11:35AM on Jul 6th 2007 by April

2. Wow she completely jacked that song lol.. and they're both crap! Imagine that.

Posted at 11:36AM on Jul 6th 2007 by Elle

3. Oh well, I guess her record label will just have to cough up some money. Isn't there supposed to be someone out there that double checks samplings, gets permission, and makes acknowledgements? How does that all work?

Posted at 11:36AM on Jul 6th 2007 by Alicia

4. They sound awfully similar to me!

Posted at 11:37AM on Jul 6th 2007 by Jordan

5. Oh yeah, they sound alike - Avril's version is better

Posted at 11:37AM on Jul 6th 2007 by LuvTMZ

6. Agreed,....Avril's version IS better!

Posted at 11:39AM on Jul 6th 2007 by Bi-Polar Hippie

7. Totally theft.......fry her.

Posted at 11:40AM on Jul 6th 2007 by ja

8. They both sound equally awful- here is a pretty funny Avril photo: http://collegecandy.com/blogroll/4010

Posted at 11:40AM on Jul 6th 2007 by jules22

9. It does sound like she borrowed heavily from the other song, doesn't it? It is the second accusation of plagiarizism being levelled at her, the first coming from former collaborator, Canadian singer Chantal Kreviazuk. It isn't looking good for Avril, is it? Does she think people will just ignore her stealing from them?

Posted at 11:42AM on Jul 6th 2007 by Lily

10. They both ought to be sued for sampling Get Off My Cloud by the Rolling Stones

Posted at 11:44AM on Jul 6th 2007 by Mick J

11. Amazing what some "has-been" songwriters won't do to turn a buck. Avril's version is much better. Admittedly, the songs are very similar. Oh well, what are they gonna do?

Posted at 11:44AM on Jul 6th 2007 by Yikes-A-Hooty

12. totally jacked the song.

Posted at 11:46AM on Jul 6th 2007 by TheScrutinizer

13. the nasty snaggle tooth spitting bitch stole the damn song i heard both of them and she ripped the song now i hope she will openly talk about that when she is busy talking about other singers

Posted at 11:49AM on Jul 6th 2007 by max

14. They sound NOTHING alike...melody-wise...
the lyrics totally..can you copywrite a sentence?!?

Posted at 11:51AM on Jul 6th 2007 by angie

15. not a fan of Avril but they are 2 different songs you can't copyright a singers "phrasing" the lyrics are generic so it's not a ripoff. Avril should be sued for not having any talent

Posted at 11:52AM on Jul 6th 2007 by goatse

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