Ed Sheeran was cleared by a New York jury over copyright claims that elements of his song “Thinking Out Loud” were lifted off Marvin Gaye’s classic R&B track “Let’s Get It On.” The jury sided with Sheeran and co-writer Amy Wadge ruling the pair did not infringe on “Let’s Get It On.” The case, brought about by the heirs of late composer Ed Townsend, claimed that “Sheeran unlawfully employed the “harmonic progressions” and “melodic and rhythmic elements,” of “Let’s Get It On.” The case was closely watched by the music industry, and Sheeran's win is seen by many as a win for recording artists. Sheeran’s lawyer Ilene Farkas told the court that the chord progressions and rhythms of both songs were “the letters of the alphabet of music” and that “songwriters now and forever must be free to use.” “Or all of us who love music will be poorer for it,” Farkas said. Sheeran told reporters that he is “very happy with the outcome of the case,” but “at the same time I’m unbelievably frustrated that baseless claims like this are allowed to go to court at all.” This is the second time that the UK pop superstar has had to prove that his songs did not infringe on any pre-existing tunes. Last year, a London judge ruled that Sheeran’s 2017 hit “Shape Of You” did not infringe on the lesser known 2015 song “Oh Why” by UK grime artist Sami Chokri. Sheeran told reporters that it was “devastating” being accused twice of stealing someone else’s music. And that he was “just a guy with a guitar who loves writing music for people to enjoy.” The win is all the more sweeter for Sheeran as it comes on the eve of the release of his latest album  “-“ (read as ‘subtract’) that debuts on all streaming platforms today.