Socialites, Taylor Swift has personally responded to the lawsuit that was filed against her regarding the song “Shake It Off,” saying she’s never even heard of the girl group 3LW, whom she is being accused of stealing lyrics from. To catch you up to speed, the country-turned-pop singer is caught up in a legal battle with Nathan Butler and Sean Hall, who wrote the 2001 song “Playas Gon’ Play” by 3LW.
In the track, the lyrics include “playas, they gonna play,” and “haters, they gonna hate,” and if you’ve heard Swift’s hit, you’d know she includes the words, “Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play and the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate.” Both Butler and Hall are accusing the 32-year-old of ripping them off by plagiarising their work, but Swift has issued a public response, saying she had no clue who 3LW was until she was sued.
Taylor Swift denied she stole lyrics to 3LW’s “Playas Gon’ Play” for her hit “Shake It Off”, claiming it was written entirely by her.
Swift said she’s never heard the song before and that it was a commonly used phrase in school, songs, movies and t-shirts. pic.twitter.com/qXnYEHoN1K
— Buzzing Pop (@BuzzingPop) August 9, 2022
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“The lyrics to ‘Shake It Off’ were written entirely by me,” she retorted in a sworn declaration against the suit. “Until learning about Plaintiffs’ claim in 2017, I had never heard the song ‘Playas Gon’ Play’ and had never heard of that song or the group 3LW.”
3LW was a girl group created in 1999 and included the band members Adrienne Bailon, Kiely Williams, and Naturi Naughton, who was later replaced by Jessica Benson following a heated dispute with the group, which she at the time claimed was racially motivated.
One of the stories Naughton shared after leaving the band was that she had found herself in an argument with Williams at KFC, before things continued to escalate in the suburban they were driving in. Radio personality Wendy Williams had reported on rumors that Bailon and Williams wanted Naughton out of the band, which became a heated discussion during the car ride, where food was allegedly thrown on the “Power” actress.
“I said I’m not the one who’s trying to kick me out the group,” Naughton recounted. “Don’t be mad that Wendy Williams or the news is out, because it’s true. And there were some names called, some profanities were thrown, she turned around, Kiely, and threw the food — mash potatoes, chicken and whatever else was in there — in my face.”
I love 3LW and you all know how much I love Taylor Swift but Players Gon’ Play sounds nothing like Shake It Off and to compare those 2 songs seems laughable. 😂🤣 I think Taylor will definitely win this battle and it’s true that Taylor was too young to remember 3LW’s music. 👸🏼💕 https://t.co/5dKG6vLaOP
— 🖤Shan⁷🃏🆘🖤 (@laffertyslady) August 9, 2022
Naughton said she got out of the car after having food thrown on her, and instead of being convinced to get back in the vehicle and be issued with an apology, the suburban drove off and left her stranded in a parking lot in Atlanta.
Her band mate Williams later addressed the claims in an IG Live video, insisting the incident never happened. “Were the old ones not working anymore? I don’t see the point. I’m not in the entertainment industry anymore, I’m a mom. I’m over here. You are on a hit television show. Why do you need this?” she said.