On August 8, 2019, Page Six reported that Steve Ronsen, a relatively unknown artist, accused Lady Gaga of copying a 3-chord progression (G, A, B) from his 2012 song “Almost.” The same progression was allegedly used in Lady Gaga’s 2018 hit song “Shallow,” which won an Oscar for Best Original Song in 2019. Compare “Almost” with “Shallow” below.

Ronsen has not filed a lawsuit yet but reportedly has sought a monetary settlement (and likely songwriting credit) from Lady Gaga. If a lawsuit is filed, Ronsen would have to prove (1) Lady Gaga or her co-writers copied protected expression from Ronsen’s song and (2) the two songs are substantially similar.

Ronsen would face several hurdles to prove his case. First, it’s not clear how he would prove that Lady Gaga or her co-writers had reasonable possibility of access to his obscure song. At the time of the Page Six publication on Aug. 8, 2019, Ronsen’s song on Soundcloud reportedly had fewer than 300 plays (it has now been played around 350,000 times on Soundcloud). Ronsen didn’t upload a music video on YouTube until April 24, 2019, well after Lady Gaga’s song was created. Ronsen could argue that the two songs are strikingly similar, which, in some jurisdictions, raises an inference of copying. Although plausible, this argument may run into the next problem of copyrightability.

Even assuming a reasonable possibility of access can be established, we can expect a fight over whether the 3-chord progression is even protectable under copyright or just a common or standard progression. According to Gaga’s attorney, Orin Snyder, the 3-chord progression in question (G, A, B) is a commonly used sequence in other popular songs. Lady Gaga co-wrote “Shallow” with Andrew Wyatt, Anthony Rossomando, and Mark Ronson and performed the ballad with Bradley Cooper in the film A Star is Born.

Ronsen and his attorney, Mark D. Shirian, claim they have provided Gaga’s legal team with a report by an esteemed musicologist and professor who has found “significant tempo, melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic similarities between the two ‘hooks’ of the songs at issue.” So it is possible that Ronsen is banking on elements beyond the 3-chord progression.

Lady Gaga’s legal team denied the allegations and calling Ronsen’s claim a “shameful and wrong” attempt to make “easy money” off of Gaga’s success.  Gaga’s attorney also says that they have provided Shirian with a report from several renowned musicologists that have found “no actionable similarities between the two songs.”

Musicians Rick Beato and Rhett Skull agree that the chord progression is a stock progression this video on YouTube.

Moreover, another person on YouTube suggests that chord progression can be found in songs by Elvis, Kansas, Peter Cetera, Hanson, Ariana Grande, and others. Take a listen:

Lady Gaga’s attorney made it clear that she will fight the lawsuit if Ronsen pursues the case. As of now, Ronsen has not filed an official complaint, but the threat of a lawsuit remains.