As you have probably heard, Cedric Gervais is under fire by DJ DStar for plagiarizing his song. DStar (real name Donnie and 1/2 of the group Solidisco) created a remix of The S.O.S Band’s ‘Take Your Time (Do It Right)‘. Gervais’ song ‘Do It Tonight’, not only has a similar name, but also sounds very familiar to DStar’s remix. DStar released a striking video on the 28th aiming to expose Cedric, along with screenshots of the artists’ Instagram conversations. So far, it’s seems that DStar is going to continue defending his work.
Thursday, DStar posted two photos of a cease and desist letter sent to him from Cedric’s team. Basically, a cease and desist letter is a warning to stop an activity that is harassing and/or infringing. Generally, the letter ends with a specific amount of time for the individual to voluntarily stop or legal action will follow. The two page letter demands DStar to immediately stop making “false, malicious, and defamatory statements” regarding Cedric’s “original” song. Further on, the letter states that Cedric’s ‘Do It Tonight’ is in no way related or copied from the remix. The letter ends that if DStar does not remove his YouTube video and all other false accusations against Cedric by June 4th, legal action will follow.
DStar did not seem threatened by the cease or desist letter, only more infuriated and less likely give in. Commenters on the post were supporting DStar and many felt the cease and desist letter was poorly written and a joke. DStar comments on the post that he has the right of freedom of speech in America to have the opinion that his song was stolen. We can expect DStar to keep his “false” and “harassing” posts up past the 4th, but legal action by both sides will most likely follow. If legal action does follow, it will cost both Cedric and DStar large amounts of money to go to court. Who do you feel is in the wrong? This dispute will be resolved eventually, but from the looks of it, Cedric’s reputation is already suffering. Read the full cease and desist letter below.