HYBE Responds After BTS' "SWIM" Hit With U.S. Copyright Lawsuit

BTS' hit single "SWIM" has recently become the subject of a copyright infringement lawsuit in the United States as three Los Angeles-based songwriters allege the song copied protectable elements from an unpublished demo they had created.

The lawsuit was first reported by Billboard in which it stated that according to the complaint, songwriters Levi Cooper, Jackson Sandler, and Noah Johnson claim they had created the demo in 2025 and later shared it with multiple industry contacts. Amongst these were individuals that they believe have connections to the people involved in creating "SWIM." They allege the BTS track contains similarities that they describe as both "obvious and inescapable" and are currently seeking damages along with other legal remedies.

The lawsuit does not name specific BTS members as defendants in the complaint but rather names HYBE, HYBE America, BIGHIT MUSIC and several other credited songwriters on the track as defendants.

The complaint further references an analysis which was prepared by musicologist Alexander Stewart, who had previously testified as well for plaintiffs in the 2023 copyright trial which involved Ed Sheeran's 2014 track "Thinking Out Loud." This time he was retained by the plaintiff to showcase the mentioned analysis and according to the filing, Stewart concluded that the similarities between the two works could not be explained by independent creation.The plaintiffs state they attempted to resolve the matter before filing suit but were unable to reach an agreement.

Responding to the reports, HYBE rejected the allegations, calling the claims "entirely groundless." The company stated that "SWIM" was independently created by its credited writers and said it would respond through the appropriate legal process in due time.

The lawsuit comes as "SWIM" continues its commercial success following its release as the title track of BTS' fifth studio album "ARIRANG." Since its release, the song has topped the Billboard Hot 100, surpassed 500 million Spotify streams, and remains one of the group's biggest releases of the year.

No court has ruled on the allegations, and the lawsuit remains in its early stages.