Getty ImagesAfter news broke that Sam Smith would have to pay Tom Petty royalties after recognizing that his "Stay With Me" is very similar to Petty's "I Won't Back Down," we had to wonder whether or not Petty was a little bit peeved, but it turns out he was anything but!
The "Handle With Care" singer released a statement on his blog addressing the "coincidental" and "unintentional" similarities, and supported the British singer and his career.
"About the Sam Smith thing. Let me say I have never had any hard feelings toward Sam," he wrote. "All my years of songwriting have shown me these things can happen. Most times you catch it before it gets out the studio door but in this case it got by."
After realizing the slip, Petty and his team took action but never wanted to enter a legal battle. He continued to explain that he, too, thought it was all just an accident. Although it seems to be water under the bridge now, Smith will be paying Petty royalties in addition to listing the early him as a co-writer.
"Sam's people were very understanding of our predicament and we easily came to an agreement. The word lawsuit was never even said and was never my intention," he continued. "And no more was to be said about it. How it got out to the press is beyond Sam or myself. Sam did the right thing and I have thought no more about this.
"A musical accident no more no less. In these times we live in this is hardly news. I wish Sam all the best for his ongoing career. Peace and love to all," he concluded.
Smith responded to Petty's statement by posting his words on Instagram and captioning the pic with a simple "x."
Petty's openness towards copyright snafus has previously been noted after he was involved in a similar situation with the Red Hot Chili Peppers. He told Rolling Stone that he never believed there was any "negative intent" from the band, whose song, "Dani California," sounded similar to "Mary Jane's Last Dance."
"If someone took my song note for note and stole it maliciously, then maybe [I'd sue]," he said. "But I don't believe in lawsuits much. I think there are enough frivolous lawsuits in this country without people fighting over pop songs.