It’s as if Hugo Boss didn’t even try to mask their plagiarism when they used “a poorly disguised fake” adaptation of The XX’s 2009 hit “Intro” in a recent commercial. The flagrant rip-off caught the attention of the band’s label, Young Turks, who tweeted a justifiably irritated response. Sadly this isn’t the first company to shamelessly rip-off musicians. Despite plagiarism being almost guaranteed to get called out in today’s digital age, Hugo Boss doesn’t stand alone in the spotlight of shame. Below is the commercial in question, along with a few examples of other popular companies who have been caught “borrowing” the work of others.
The XX vs. Hugo Boss
Hugo Boss has yet to respond to their rip-off the The XX’s “Intro.” However, it’s not looking great for them as their commercial features a song with undeniable similarities.
Beach House vs. Volkswagen
While you can “trust the small but tough Volkswagen to protect your loved ones and keep you safe,” you certainly can’t trust them to not steal from you. In a completely shady move, the car company was denied rights to Beach House’s 2010 song “Take Care,” so they went ahead and created a near-identical version to replace it. Not cool, Volkswagen. Not cool.
John Butler vs. Oikos Greek Yogurt
Oikas had the brilliant idea to air a stolen rendition of John Butler’s song “Zebra” to over 100 million people during the 2012 Super Bowl. Maybe they thought no one would notice, or maybe they just didn’t care. Either way, Butler came out on top after winning a settlement over the yogurt company. The original song can be found here.
Sohn vs. Audi
In September, English musician Sohn (aka Christopher Taylor) publicly accused Audi of ripping off his music during a 30 second commercial for their A3 Sportback. Compare the original to the commercial below to hear the obvious similarities.
