Amid mounting frustrations, British singer Ed Sheeran threatened he’d leave the music industry entirely if he were to lose an ongoing copyright lawsuit over his 2014 single Thinking Out Loud.
On Tuesday, the fifth day of the trial, Sheeran again denied that he plagiarized elements of Marvin Gaye’s soul classic Let’s Get It On.
While on the stand, Sheeran, 32, was asked by his lawyer, Ilene Farkas, what he would do if he were to lose the lawsuit. Sheeran’s answer was simple. “If that happens, I’m done, I’m stopping,” he said.
The singer called the lawsuit “really insulting.” “I work really hard to be where I’m at,” he told the jury. Sheeran also appeared bothered when he was questioned by the plaintiff’s lawyer. “You’re trying to diminish my success,” he complained about the line of questioning. “Thinking Out Loud was my first Grammy.” He went on to say that earlier testimony from musicologist Alexander Stewart, who was hired by the plaintiffs, should be “criminal.” (Stewart told the jury on Wednesday that Thinking Out Loud and Let’s Get It On share striking similarities.) “I don’t know why he’s allowed to be an expert,” Sheeran said.