The documentary about Girl Talk was all about how this artist uses different singers and writers music by mixing them together and creating a new and different sound. It is illegal to use someones work with out their permission which usually includes getting money for the use of their songs. The documentary talked about how it should not be illegal because everything that has been artistically done to some extent has elements from previous works. Fair use is one of the ways that Girl Talk is covering themselves and trying not to get sued. Fair use is basically can be used as a defense depending on the purpose of the use, is it commercial or private. The nature of the work is also taken into consideration and the amount and substance of the portion you use compared to the entire work as a whole. The last thing what effect does you using someone work have on the value of the original. The fact that Girl Talk only uses seconds of each piece of music and the outcome of the use is positive I think its a good defense for the artist.
Transformative use when the work uses a source work in a completely new or unexpected way. Girl talks uses the pieces of music in a new way, he mixes with other music. You can tell what the original work is but you can also tell that it is being used in a different unexpected way. Girl talk has not gotten in trouble from what I am aware of since watching the documentary and I think its because of these two defenses, he is doing something completely different with the works making it a transformative use.
