Lizzo is on trial over a song. The accusation: copyright infringement. The song was never released.
Lizzo is on trial in the US over an unreleased song. The accusation: She is said to have committed a copyright infringement. Actress Sydney Sweeney is also apparently involved in the matter.
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The singer is said to have sampled a piece of music by another musician without permission. The accusation goes back to a social media clip from August 2025 in which Lizzo provided insights into her previously unreleased song “I’m Goin’ In Till October”. According to the lawsuit from California, the piece contains elements of the song “Win or Lose (We Tried)”.
The publishing rights to the soul hit from the 1970s by Sam Dees are held by the company “GRC Trust”. The company’s legal team accuses Lizzo and her label, Atlantic Records, of “making profits that they would not have made without violating GRC’s rights” through the use of the sample. An out-of-court settlement attempt had previously failed.
What does Sydney Sweeney have to do with this?
A line in Lizzo’s song goes: “I got good jeans like I’m Sydney.” In it, the musician satirically alludes to the actress’s controversial advertising campaign with the fashion label “American Eagle”. In a commercial for the US company, Sydney Sweeney talks about her “Good Jeans” – or phonetically “Good Genes”. The promotional clip sparked one of the most heated pop culture debates of 2025 and brought accusations of racism against both the actress and the company.
Reactions from Lizzo’s environment
Lizzo and her team are surprised by the lawsuit because the song was never released and therefore could not make a profit. In a statement to the BBC, a spokesperson said: “We are surprised that The GRC Trust has filed this lawsuit. For the avoidance of doubt, the song has never been commercially released or monetized.”