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The controversial Hero

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"Hero" was the subject of two copyright plagiarism cases; one by Christopher Selletti and the other by Rhonda Dimmer, filed in 1993 and 1996.[15]Selletti claimed he had written the song's lyrics in the form of a poem. One day, as he drove Sly Stone in a limousine to Long Island, he claimed to have shown him the poem. Selletti claimed Stone complimented the poem, taking it and promising to patent it and earn him royalties.[16] After many months, the pair fell out of contact, leading Selletti to mail himself the envelope and poem, performing a "poor man's copyright."[16] Three years later in 1996, he claimed to have listened to Carey's album Music Box and was shocked when he noted the song's similar lyrics. He filed a lawsuit against Carey, Stone, Sony and Stone's manager Jerry Goldstein. Selletti claimed that Stone must have sold or contributed the lyrics to Carey during the recording of the album in late 1992.[16] However, since Stone did not receive songwriting credits on "Hero", Selletti then dropped the suit against Stone, leaving him against Carey and Sony. Prior to their court room meeting, Carey told New York Daily News "I feel totally victimized. 'Hero' is my creation and it holds a very special meaning to me. I have every intention of fighting this all the way."[15] In court, Carey provided evidence to her innocence, in the form of a dated lyrical and music notebook, with conceptual info on the song dated back to November 20, 1992, prior to Selletti's meeting with Stone.[16] Additionally, Carey stated the fact that she had originally written it for the film Hero alongside Afanasieff, making their connection or the involvement of his material impossible. Judge Denny Chin found Carey innocent, and ordered Selletti to pay her a fine.[15]

Years later, after consulting with another lawyer, Selletti made another attempt at suing Carey and Sony. His lawyer, Jeffrey Levitt, who uncovered the fact that the film was released in October 1992, a full six weeks prior to the November 22 dating in Carey's notebook. Additionally, "Heart of a Hero", which was written by Luther Vandross for the film, was submitted in January 1992, making it impossible for "Hero" to have been the original choice of song for the soundtrack.[16] After uncovering further tapes from the studio dating to the summer of 1992, recordings provided evidence that Carey and Afansieff had indeed discussed and had parts of the song completed well before the film's October release.[16] Following the evidence from both parties, the judge dismissed the case, ruling in Carey's favor for the second time. Following the dismissal of the case, Rhonda Dimmie, another songwriter and an independent singer, filed a lawsuit against Carey, this time claiming the song to have borrowed heavily from her song "Be Your Own Hero".[17] During the short deposition made by Carey, Afanasieff revealed that they had written the song in two days during the summer of 1992, "within a matter of hours."[16] Soon after, the case was dismissed, with the judge claiming there to not be sufficient evidence on Dimmie's behalf. Following the lawsuits, in 2001 Selletti made further hints to plan another lawsuit, as well as a forensic team of specialists to conduct research on the incident.[15] Following the suits, Cindy Berger, Carey's publicist released the following statement: "This case has been thrown out of court three times. The federal judge after hearing Selletti's story and considering all the evidence ruled the case was a 'complete fabrication' and that it was filed 'to extort a settlement from deep-pocket defendants."[16]]

 

 

 

 

 

dead7 dead7

 

This guy ain't stopping yet moo2

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or Madonna getting sued by........................ moo1

 

EVERYBODY come on dance with me

EVERYBODY get up and do your thing

 

mad1

 

In case you don't know, those are the lyrics to Madonna's first single "Everybody"

mad1  

 

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