Disco icon Amanda Lear has publicly accused American pop star Miley Cyrus of plagiarising the melody from her track The Sphinx in a recent composition.
Journalist Candice Mahout reported on the musical conflict on Monday during the C'est Show segment of the morning television program Bonjour ! La Matinale TF1. According to the broadcast, Lear publicly raised the allegation after identifying clear similarities between her classic song and a recent release by Cyrus.
The French television report noted that Lear claims the melodic structure of her composition was copied without permission for use in the American singer's new work.
Allegations of musical copying
The dispute focuses specifically on the musical notes and melody of The Sphinx, a track originally released by Lear during the height of the European disco movement. Lear stated on the broadcast that the tune in Cyrus's recent song directly replicates the melodic sequence of her own record.
The report on TF1 did not name the specific song by Cyrus that is alleged to have copied the track, and no response from Cyrus or her legal representatives was cited in the broadcast. In music industry copyright disputes, claims of melodic copying generally turn on whether two compositions share a distinct sequence of notes that goes beyond common musical conventions.
Careers of Amanda Lear and Miley Cyrus
Lear established herself as a prominent figure in European popular culture during the late 1970s. After working as a model and visual artist in Paris and London, she achieved international commercial success as a disco singer with hit records across continental Europe before expanding her career into television presenting in France and Italy. Her 1978 single The Sphinx remains one of her signature musical releases.
Cyrus rose to prominence as a teen actor on the Disney Channel television series Hannah Montana before establishing a successful global career as a pop singer and songwriter. Known for hit singles such as Wrecking Ball and Flowers, Cyrus has earned multiple Grammy Awards and remains one of the most commercially successful American recording artists of her generation.
Broadcaster and morning show coverage
The segment was presented by Candice Mahout as part of cultural coverage for TF1info, the digital news service of French television network TF1. Launched as France's first private television channel, TF1 broadcasts Bonjour ! La Matinale TF1 as its flagship national morning news and entertainment program.
