Olivia Dean is not named as a defendant in the new copyright lawsuit over her song "I've Seen It." The suit instead targets her label and publishers and alleges the song copies Bill Withers' classic "Just the Two of Us."
What the lawsuit alleges
Mattie Music Group, the publisher of Withers' catalog, filed the complaint in federal court in Los Angeles. It claims "I've Seen It," the closing track on Dean's 2025 album The Art of Loving, copies a "distinctively protectable melody" from the 1981 hit. The filing says a musicologist found "substantial similarities" and calls them "obvious and inescapable."
Who is named
The defendants are Capitol Records, Universal Music Group and Dean's publishing companies. The suit does not seek damages from Dean or her co-writers, Bastian Langebaek and Max Wolfgang. The publisher wants damages decided at a jury trial. These are allegations only, and no court has ruled on them.
About the artists
"Just the Two of Us" was recorded by saxophonist Grover Washington Jr. with Withers and won a Grammy. Withers, who also wrote "Lean on Me" and "Ain't No Sunshine," died in 2020 at age 81. Dean won Best New Artist at the 2026 Grammys, and The Art of Loving produced the hits "Man I Need" and "So Easy (To Fall in Love)."
Withers grew up in Slab Fork, West Virginia, where he heard gospel in church. His "Lean on Me" is still sung in congregations and at memorials today.
The case is still at an early stage, and it's unclear when the court will take it up.
