Grammy Award-winning singer Olivia Dean faces a copyright infringement lawsuit in California over her mellow love ballad “I’ve Seen It,” with a music group alleging the track lifts heavily from Bill Withers’ 1981 soul classic “Just the Two of Us.”
The Lawsuit Filed in California
The lawsuit names Capitol Records, Universal Music, and other co-defendants on one count of copyright infringement, though neither Dean nor her co-writers are listed as named defendants. “I’ve Seen It” serves as the final track on Dean’s sophomore album, The Art of Loving, which dropped in September 2025. According to Spotify song credits, the 27-year-old British singer composed and co-wrote the lyrics alongside Bastian Langebæk and Max Wolfgang.
Representatives for Mattie Music Group stated they reached an “obvious and inescapable conclusion” in August 2026 after listening to Dean’s song multiple times. The complaint asserts that due to the enduring popularity of “Just the Two of Us,” Dean and her collaborators possessed a “reasonable opportunity to encounter the Original Work before creating ‘I’ve Seen It.'” Furthermore, the filing takes issue with the track’s “repeated copying of the distinctively protectable melody.”
Musicological Analysis and Prior Legal Actions
To substantiate the claims, Mattie Music Group enlisted musicologist Alexander Stewart to evaluate the two compositions. Stewart concluded that the tracks share “substantial similarities in protectable musical expression, including repeated copying of the distinctively protectable melody,” according to the court documents. The music group notified the defendants of these material similarities on Aug. 17, but argues that the defendants continued to reproduce, distribute, license, publicly perform, and commercially exploit Dean’s song.
This is not Mattie Music Group’s first legal dispute involving the late Bill Withers’ catalog. The company previously took legal action against rapper Kendrick Lamar in 2016 over allegations that he lifted from Withers’ song “Don’t You Want to Stay,” a case that ultimately concluded in a settlement.
“Just the Two of Us” was originally released in 1981 by Withers and jazz saxophonist Grover Washington Jr. for Washington’s Winelight album. Ralph MacDonald and William Salter co-wrote the track alongside Withers, who passed away from heart complications on March 30, 2020, at the age of 81. Alongside “Just the Two of Us,” Withers is widely known for enduring hits such as “Ain’t No Sunshine” and “Lean on Me.”
Damages Sought and Ongoing Responses
Mattie Music Group is seeking an injunction to halt further copyright infringement, an unspecified amount in damages including defendants’ profits derived from the alleged infringement, legal fees, and statutory damages of up to $150,000 for willful infringement. Neither representatives for Olivia Dean nor Universal Music Group, which owns Capitol Records, immediately responded to requests for comment.
The legal challenge arrives while Dean remains on her Art of Loving tour, with scheduled performances at the Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne.
