Published : Nov. 12, 2013 - 15:07
프라이머리와 박명수 (MBC)
최근 힙합 뮤지션 프라이머리를 비롯한 국내 가수들이 잇따른 표절 의혹에 휩싸이면서 한국 가요계가 과거부터 지금까지 끊이지 않는 표절 논란에 곤욕을 치르고 있다.
많은 이들은 이러한 표절 논란이 향후 국내 가요계에 어떤 영향을 미칠지에 대해 의문을 제기하고 있다.
프라이머리와 방송인 박명수가 팀을 이뤄 최근 방송된 MBC 무한도전의 자유로 가요제 참가곡으로 선보인 ‘아이갓씨(I Got C)’는 국내 음원차트 1위를 휩쓸었다.
하지만 얼마 지나지 않아 네티즌들은 프라이머리의 ‘아이갓씨’가 프로듀서 데이비드 슈울러스가 작곡한 네덜란드 가수 카로 에메랄드의 ‘리퀴드 런치(Liquid Lunch)’와 눈에 띄게 유사하다는 점을 지적했다.
과거 케이팝 그룹 빅뱅의 리더 지드래곤과 솔로 디바 이효리 등의 경우에서도 볼수 있듯이 이러한 표절 시비는 한국 가요계에선 낯설지 않은 광경이다. 프라이머리는 이로써 올해 가요계를 강타한 가수 아이유, 로이킴과 함께 표절 의혹 리스트에 올랐다.
네티즌은 아이유의 정규 3집 앨범 ‘모던타임스’ 타이틀 곡 ‘분홍신’이 독일그룹 넥타의 ‘히얼즈 어스(Here’s Us)’와 매우 흡사하다며 표절을 의심한 바 있다.
두 곡의 유사성을 보여주는 비교 동영상이 네티즌들에 의해 유트브에 게재되기도 했다.
엠넷 ‘슈퍼스타K 4’ 우승자인 가수 로이 킴의 ‘봄봄봄’ 또한 인디 뮤지션 ‘어쿠스틱 레인’의 데뷔 싱글 ‘러브 이즈 캐논(Love is Canon)’의 우크렐레 버젼과 유사하다는 이유로 표절 시비에 휘말렸다.
로이킴이 표절 논란에 휩싸이자 CJ E&M 측은 표절을 당한 건 로이킴이라며 반박했다. 실제로 표절 시비가 불거진 우크렐레 버젼은 로이킴의 ‘봄봄봄’ 발표 후 약 한달 뒤에 한국저작권위원회에 등록된 것으로 알려졌다.
국내 가수들의 표절 논란이 잇따르자 샘플링의 의미와 샘플링과 표절의 차이점이 이슈가 되고 있다.
이에 대해 AMP 미디어의 프로듀서 브라이언 박은 “샘플링은 곡 발표 이전에 원곡의 가수로부터 허가를 받는 것”이라고 설명했다.
그는 “표절이란 상대의 곡을 베껴 다른 이들이 알아차리지 못할 것을 바라는 거나, 또는 눈치채지 못하도록 곡을 변형하는 것이다. 반면 샘플링은 애초에 원곡의 아티스트에게 허가를 받는 것이다“라고 두 단어 사이의 차이를 명확히 했다.
(임우정 인턴기자 / 코리아헤럴드)
Netizens cracking down on plagiarism scandals plaguing K-pop world
The recent charges of plagiarism involving local hip-hop artist Primary has brought the Korean music industry’s notorious past and ongoing allegations of plagiarism to the fore.
Many are now questioning how these accusations will impact the future of the industry.
Thanks to the infinite capabilities of the Internet, netizens have been exposing supposed plagiarism.
“As bad as an accusation of plagiarism can be, the resolution of plagiarism in Korea might actually be far worse,” said one industry insider. “A false claim can seriously damage a person‘s career while a true claim can be very difficult to collect any sort of financial damages for.”
The single “I Got C” was produced by Primary along with comedian Park Myung-soo for the newly released album “Jayuro Music Festival” by the members of popular MBC variety program “Infinite Challenge.” The single became a big hit, topping the local real time music charts.
However, soon after the song’s release, netizens revealed that Primary’s track, along with several other tracks previously produced by the artist, bore striking resemblances to songs produced by David Schreurs. Schreurs produced Dutch singer Caro Emerald’s “Liquid Lunch,” from which the Korean hip-hop artist is accused of lifting the melody.
“These days, there are more and more overseas producers, composers and songwriters expressing interest working with Korean music artists,” said the industry insider. “Although such international collaborations are becoming more commonplace in the industry, any time a high profile plagiarism case emerges, it never looks good.”
The K-pop industry is no stranger to copyright infringement allegations, with some of the most notorious cases involving some of the nation’s biggest acts, including Big Bang leader G-Dragon and solo diva Lee Hyori. This year alone Primary is merely joining a list of other stars such as IU and Roy Kim, whom netizens have accused of having tracks that sound far too similar to other artists’ work.
Netizens have raised plagiarism allegations against K-pop star IU’s lead track “The Red Shoes” from her recently released third studio album “Modern Times.” They claim the track sounds strikingly similar to German duo Nekta’s “Here’s Us,” an electro-jazz pop track released in 2009. Some netizens went as far as to compile a YouTube comparison clip of the two songs played back to back, with others even overlapping the tracks so listeners could hear them simultaneously, highlighting the similarities.
Earlier this year Superstar K4 winner Roy Kim also found himself swept in a sea of plagiarism controversy surrounding his debut single “Spring Spring Spring,” which spent three weeks at the top of the Billboard K-Pop Hot 100. Online communities began posting comments after the single was released in April, accusing Kim of plagiarizing indie singer Acoustic Rain’s ukulele version of the song “Love is Canon.”
After the news came to light, representatives of CJ E&M made a counter claim stating that it was Kim, in fact, whose work was being plagiarized. It was later revealed that the version of “Love is Canon” was in fact registered with the Korea Copyright Commission nearly one month after Kim’s “Spring Spring Spring” was released.
There is also the issue of sampling, a common practice in hip-hop music, and how it differs from plagiarism.
“When you sample something, you’re giving credit and getting permission from the original artist before the song is released,” said producer Bryan Park with company AMP Media. “Plagiarism is copying someone’s song and hoping no one notices or changing the song so that no one will notice. Sampling is, from the beginning, giving credit to the original artist and getting permission. It’s all about credit and permission.”
By Julie Jackson
(juliejackson@heraldcorp.com)