Olivia Dean’s ‘I’ve Seen It’ Faces Copyright Lawsuit

Olivia Dean’s song “I’ve Seen It” is at the center of a copyright lawsuit alleging that it copied protected elements of Bill Withers and Grover Washington Jr.’s “Just the Two of Us.” Mattie Music Group, which administers Withers’ catalog, filed the complaint Thursday in federal court in Los Angeles.

The claim targets Capitol Records, Sony Music Publishing and Kobalt Music Publishing America. Dean and her co-writers, Bastian Langebaek and Max Wolfgang, are not named as defendants in the complaint described by the reports. That distinction matters: the filing is an allegation against companies involved in publishing and distributing the song, not a court finding that Dean committed infringement.

What the publisher alleges

Mattie Music Group says “I’ve Seen It” reproduces substantial parts of the earlier song’s protected melody. According to the complaint, the publisher asked musicologist Alexander Stewart to compare the works after representatives noticed similarities in August. It says his preliminary analysis found substantial similarities in protectable musical expression.

The publisher also says it sent written notice to the defendants on August 17, identifying the disputed composition and the musical elements it considered similar. The complaint alleges that the song continued to be distributed, licensed and performed after that notice. It seeks damages and an injunction that would stop further alleged infringement.

The song and its musical context

“I’ve Seen It” closes Dean’s 2025 album The Art of Loving. “Just the Two of Us,” written by Withers, Ralph MacDonald and William Salter and recorded by Washington with Withers on vocals, reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and won a Grammy for best R&B song.

The dispute arrives during a high-profile period for Dean, who won the 2026 Grammy for best new artist. Representatives for Dean, Capitol and Kobalt had not provided public responses in the consulted reports, while a Kobalt representative declined to comment to Billboard. The case is now at its opening stage, and the defendants will have an opportunity to answer the allegations before a court evaluates the musical and legal arguments.