I can actually speak to this. I think that it can be an obstacle that needs to be overcome. In my case, I have a very good ear for relative pitch, including ch

I can actually speak to this. I think that it can be an obstacle that needs to be overcome. In my case, I have a very good ear for relative pitch, including chord changes and a very good memory for melody and lyrics. If I hear a song a handful of times, I can usually figure it out from memory on the guitar (although not usually in the original key). While this is very fun in a jam session situation or at a party, it's not really great for trying to write original music. I'll start playing something that sounds nice and riffing to it, only to realize the similarity to one of the other couple of thousand songs I know how to play. I try to ignore it because I know its inevitable. Chord progressions and melodic elements are reused all the time, and many times are stylistic markers. Some bands have multiple albums that all sound the exact same. But it's not always easy to ignore the voice in your head that's like "you're playing a Coldplay song", or "you pretty much wrote this song already in high school". Sometimes I end up trying to write around the other song, deliberately changing things to sound as unlike the song I'm trying not to rip off as possible. Sometimes that ends up sucking the energy out of the creative process. Sometimes it works.