Singer-songwriter Sting has his former Police bandmates watching every move he makes and every bond he breaks as he faces a lawsuit over missing royalties.
Guitarist Andy Summers and drummer Stewart Copeland filed a High Court writ against Sting. The Daily Mail reports that Sting earns £550,000 annually in royalties for the 1983 hit Every Breath You Take, the decade’s fifth-best-selling song and the top seller of that year. Summers and Copeland allege Sting denied them cowriting credits and royalties.
“Lawyers tried repeatedly to reach an out-of-court settlement but hit a stalemate,” said a source. “Andy and Stewart decided there was no alternative than court so pressed the button. They say they are owed millions in lost royalties.”
The lawsuit names Sting – under his legal name, Gordon Matthew Sumner – and his firm Magnetic Publishing Limited as defendants.
Sting previously stated that he wrote Every Breath You Take in Jamaica at Ian Fleming’s former home. “I would sit at his desk at night and try and write songs,” he recalled. He described the track’s enduring appeal as its duality: “It could be sinister or it could be quite warm and sweet. That’s why it’s so successful.”
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The Police and Sting’s Career
The Police, formed in London in 1977, released five albums before breaking up in 1984. They reunited sporadically, most notably for a world tour in 2007–2008. Over their career, the band earned eight Grammy nominations and won five, with hits like “Roxanne,” “Message in a Bottle,” and “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” cementing their legacy.
Post the breakup, Sting built a hugely successful solo career. He headlined this year’s Isle of Wight Festival and Latitude and will bring his Sting 3.0 tour to London this autumn.
In 2021, Sting admitted he regretted reforming the trio in 2007, calling the tour “an exercise in nostalgia.” He explained that he prefers performing solo because it gives him “total freedom.”
