The Echoes of Inspiration: Miley Cyrus and the Accusation of Songwriting Borrowing

The music industry has been abuzz with the news that Miley Cyrus is being sued by Tempo Music Investments, alleging that her hit song "Flowers" borrowed heavily from Bruno Mars' 2013 ballad "When I Was Your Man". The lawsuit claims that the two songs share numerous melodic, harmonic, and lyrical elements, including the melodic pitch design and sequence of the verse, the connecting bass-line, and specific chord progressions.

The dispute began when Tempo Music Investments, which owns a percentage of the U.S. copyrights to Mars' song, discovered similarities between the two songs. According to the lawsuit, "Flowers" duplicates numerous elements of "When I Was Your Man", including the melodic pitch design and sequence of the verse, the connecting bass-line, certain bars of the chorus, certain theatrical music elements, lyric elements, and specific chord progressions. The suit meticulously dissects the melodic and harmonic material, pitch ending pattern, bass-line structure, and lyrics of both songs, noting they are "substantially similar". The lawsuit also highlights an interview with Billboard in March 2023, where co-songwriter Michael Pollack refused to comment on the similarities between the two songs. The lawsuit argues that "Flowers" would not exist without "When I Was Your Man", and that Cyrus, Hein, and Pollack have created a derivative work of Mars' song without authorization.

Actions