“Will You Be There” or “The Swans of Balaka”

Did you know an Italian songwriter, Albano Carrisi, claimed that “Will You Be There” was copied from his song “I Cigni di Balaka” (“The Swans of Balaka”)?

The case involving Albano and Michael Jackson had a fair amount of media coverage in national and international newspapers because it was quite curious to think that the most famous singer in the world could have plagiarized the song of a singer like Albano.

It all started in 1991 when Jari, son of Albano and Romina Power, noticed similarities between a song from Jackson’s album “Dangerous” and a song from his parents.

Albano quickly filed a lawsuit, claiming Jackson’s song was a copy. He said: “I want to say in advance that I have always considered Michael Jackson a genius. I think one of his collaborators passed on my melody to him.” Albano then decided to ask for compensation of over 7 million euros at the time.

In 1994, following the legal action brought by Albano, the court ordered the withdrawal of “Will You Be There” from the Italian market. The Italian court ruled in favor of Carrisi because Jackson failed to show up to court.

On February 4, 1997, Michael Jackson, accompanied by 15 of his lawyers, entered the courtroom in Rome to answer questions from magistrates. He also apologized for not being able to attend previous meetings in person.

“I never took or stole anything. Master Al Bano’s accusation against me is completely false. I had never heard Maestro Albano’s song before, nor had I ever met him anywhere. I swear these allegations are completely unfounded,” said Michael in court.

The court ruled in favor of Michael Jackson and rejected the claim, stating that while the two songs were very similar, they both may have been inspired by The Ink Spots’ 1939 hit “Bless You for Being an Angel”.

Subsequently, the Milan court declared that none of the songs were original, ordering Albano to pay legal costs. Case closed.

So here the three songs in question, by chronological order:

“Bless You for Being an Angel”:

“I Cigni di Balaka”:

“Will You Be There”: