International superstar Mariah Carey is being sued by songwriter Andy Stone over her mega-hit holiday single All I Want for Christmas is You.
According to an article from BBC News, Stone says he co-wrote a song with the same name five years earlier and argues that Carey exploited his “popularity” and “style”.
BBC shared that despite sharing a title, the two songs appear musically different, but Stone claims Carey caused confusion and did not ask for permission.
Carey has not yet responded.
Her version of All I Want for Christmas is You is one of the best known Christmas records of all time. Since appearing on the album Merry Christmas in 1994, it has topped the charts in several countries and by 2017 had reportedly earned Carey more than $60m (£48m) in royalties.
The song has been streamed one billion times on Spotify.
Stone, who performs under the name Vince Vance with the band Vince Vance and the Valiants, is claiming at least $20m (£16m) in damages according to BBC.
The complaint says Carey, as well as her co-writer Walter Afanasieff and record label Sony Music Entertainment, have earned “undeserved profits” from the song, arguing that the defendants “knowingly, willfully, and intentionally engaged in a campaign” to infringe copyright.
Stone argues that he never gave permission for his song to be used for any purpose, including “the creation of a derivative work”.
BBC News said it is not clear why the legal challenge has only been made now, 28 years after Carey’s song was released.
The complaint says Stone’s lawyers first contacted Carey and her co-defendants last year but were “unable to come to any agreement”.
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