Explore Common Questions

How do I know if my music has been copied, or if it’s just a coincidence?

Music today moves fast through platforms, genres, and global audiences. So when a new song resembles your own work, it’s natural to wonder: Did they copy me? Or is it just coincidence?

At LexAural, we specialize in helping creators and rights-holders answer that question. Whether your concern is legal, cultural, or strategic, here’s what you should know.

Start With the Music

The foundation of any copying claim is the music itself. This includes not just how it sounds on the surface, but its underlying structure: melody, harmony, rhythm, lyrics, and form. At LexAural, we use Sonic Visualizer and Logic Pro to conduct transcription and side-by-side comparisons, identifying whether the similarities between two works are deep or merely superficial. Still, musical resemblance alone doesn’t prove infringement.

Access Matters

Legally, proving copying requires more than similarity. It also requires showing access. That is, the accused party must have had a real opportunity to hear your work. Courts will consider distribution methods, collaborations, and even shared networks. Without access, even uncanny similarities might be dismissed as coincidence. That’s why our assessments always balance both factors.

When It’s Just Coincidence

Some patterns are simply common across music: four-chord progressions, repeated hooks, and standard rhythms show up everywhere. But it’s the small, distinctive choices, be they unexpected harmonies or unusual note groupings, that make a case stronger. These are what we focus on when identifying potential copying. If both works share rare musical features, that may point toward derivation rather than chance.

Unconscious Copying Exists

People sometimes absorb melodies unintentionally. That’s called cryptomnesia, or unconscious copying. Courts have acknowledged that even when there’s no intent to copy, liability can still apply. If someone encountered your music in the past, and it resurfaced in their new work without recognition. That’s still a potential claim. We help assess that history of influence.

The Market May Matter More Than the Law

Not everyone wants a court battle. Sometimes, the goal is clarity, especially when audiences confuse one track with another. At LexAural, we apply quantitative and qualitative research methods, like listener surveys, platform metadata review, and user behavior analysis, to explore market confusion and brand interference. This is especially valuable when you want to protect your identity, not just pursue legal remedies.

How LexAural Helps

We bring together musicological rigor and mixed-method insights. That means we don’t just analyze harmony. We consider exposure, attribution, and real-world impact. Our goal is to provide strategic clarity. If legal action is warranted, we help build the foundation. If not, we help you avoid spending energy in the wrong direction.

Need Help Deciding?

If you’re unsure whether you’ve been copied, or what to do about it, don’t spiral. Get a second opinion. We offer preliminary reviews designed to save you time, reduce risk, and clarify your options.

When should I hire a cultural consultant for my project or campaign?

A small nonprofit recently applied for a major grant. Their programming was thoughtful, and their community ties were genuine. But their materials misrepresented them, portraying the project as a founder-led passion effort without a clear public benefit. Funders weren’t sure what to make of them. The result? They were passed over.

No one questioned their intent. But the way they framed their work didn’t align with what funders or partners needed to see. That’s where cultural consultants come in: not just to review language, but to help clarify what your project is, who it’s for, and how it will land.

Timing Matters More Than You Think

Cultural consultants are often brought in too late, after the messaging is published, after the pitch is submitted, after the confusion has already set in.

Ideally, you should hire a consultant:

• Before drafting materials for grants, campaigns, or partnerships
• When entering a space or audience demographic that isn’t your own
• When you’re trying to align your internal mission with external messaging

Common Situations That Call for Cultural Review

You might need cultural consulting if:

• You’re launching messaging meant to build trust across cultural or linguistic lines
• You’re representing heritage, identity, or community experience you’re not directly part of
• You’ve been rejected from grants or initiatives and aren’t sure why
• You’re expanding into new audiences and feel like something’s not quite resonating

These are early warning signs, not proof something is wrong, but signals that expert input could prevent missteps and clarify your value.

LexAural’s Role in These Moments

LexAural doesn’t just tell you what to avoid. We help identify:

• Where your materials are unclear, misaligned, or misunderstood
• How your institutional role is perceived (vs. how you define it)
• What framing shifts might help funders, audiences, or media recognize your mission

This isn’t PR. It’s strategic alignment rooted in cultural literacy.

Our approach is not only culturally informed, but also data-driven. We use content audits, linguistic framing analysis, and stakeholder interviews to uncover where your message misaligns, why it’s being misread, and how to course-correct effectively.

What Happens After

Clients have used our feedback to:

• Strengthen grant language that had previously gone unnoticed
• Reframe community programming for funders unfamiliar with their field
• Avoid tone-deaf messaging that could damage trust or clarity

We don’t just help you sound right. We help ensure your message makes it to the right ears, before someone passes on your pitch or project.

Final Thought

Cultural review isn’t about walking on eggshells. It’s about making sure your work is understood on its own terms and positioned for support.

Don’t wait for misalignment to show up in rejection letters. Let’s clarify your message before it costs you visibility or trust.

What does a strategy review include for my content or platform?

You’ve launched something, an artist site, a nonprofit initiative, a campaign landing page. You know it has value. But the feedback is quiet, or polite, or vague.

That doesn’t always mean your content is bad. It often means your structure, messaging, or tone isn’t aligned with how people read, decide, or search.

That’s where LexAural’s strategy review comes in.

Not Just Editing—Strategic Diagnosis

We read your platform like a new visitor, but with an expert eye. Depending on your needs, we might look at:

• How clearly your value is stated or buried
• Whether people know what to do after they land
• Places where your voice loses momentum or clarity
• SEO and structural blind spots that affect discovery

The goal isn’t to fix everything. It’s to prioritize what matters most, and give you an outside-in view you can act on.

What You Won’t Get from a Blog Post

You can Google how to improve a page. But what’s hard to find is which improvements actually matter for your audience, your goals, and your platform.

LexAural combines narrative insight, UX logic, and SEO strategy to help your content land stronger without losing your voice.

Final Thought

If you feel like your content isn’t pulling its weight, don’t overhaul everything blind. Let us help you find the signal in the noise.

What kinds of problems does LexAural help solve?

At LexAural, clients don’t come to us looking for services. They come with a situation, a concern, or a gut feeling that something isn’t working, and they need clarity before making their next move.

Here are just a few problems we’ve helped address:

“A new song sounds just like ours. Is it copying?”

We conduct structured music analysis using transcription, waveform inspection, and exposure review, helping clients determine whether they have a legal case or just an eerie overlap. Our work has helped clients decide whether to license, litigate, or let it go.

“Our grant application keeps getting rejected, but we don’t know why.”

LexAural helps uncover disconnects between your messaging and how funders perceive your mission or impact. We review framing, tone, and public-facing materials to clarify what your narrative is really saying, and how it can work harder for you.

“Our content is solid, but no one’s engaging with it.”

Whether it’s a campaign site, artist profile, or cultural initiative, we evaluate structure, tone, and visibility. We identify friction points in hierarchy, language, and user flow, and offer practical revisions that improve reach without sacrificing voice.

“We want to expand to international audiences, but we’re not sure what needs to change.”

Whether you’re entering the U.S., China, Latin America, or elsewhere, LexAural helps align your content and strategy with regional expectations. Our team draws on diverse cultural expertise to help you adapt messaging and tone while staying true to your purpose.

LexAural supports legal teams, nonprofits, creators, and institutions, but the core is always the same: we help you understand where communication breaks down, and how to fix it with clarity and context.