Maybe Pandora played it for them on one of
their random playlists one day.”
Foster said it’s not even “required that they
actually knew of the song, but they may have
subconsciously replayed it, even if they didn’t
know or understand they were doing that.”
“The wider spread something is,” Foster said, “the
easier it is to show that they either did or could
have had access to it.”
Neither Kelber nor Foster is involved in the
Perry case.
Gray’s attorneys did make other arguments for
ways Perry or one of her co-writers may have
heard the song, including some radio play,
concerts in public spaces, and the recording
being played in arenas and similar venues.
The album the song was on was even
nominated for a Grammy, though not in a
category that makes the show on television.
And they often pointed out in court that Perry’s
own career began as a Christian artist, though
she testified during the trial that she listened
almost exclusively to secular music even then.
Perry’s team called the decision “travesty of
justice,” saying it’s dangerous to music and
creativity for such cases to prevail on such
thin evidence.
“We’ve been receiving outcry from people all over
the world, including musicologists,” Lepera said.
They have already filed a motion for the trial
judge to throw out the verdict that will get a
hearing, and they will almost certainly appeal to
a higher court where the broad decision made
by the jury could be severely tested.