It's the fight of two Jelly Rolls and only one can win. A band named Jellyroll is suing singer Jelly Roll for trademark infringement, alleging the singer has affected their business.
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In a statement made on Instagram, the band alleges that they've been performing under the name for decades. They said they've become aware of Jelly Roll (the singer) last year. They alleged that Jelly Roll has affected their ability to rank on Google, get recognition, and their overall business.
The band wrote, "We have become aware of, and you may have heard of, another 'Jelly Roll', who has recently gained some fame in the country music scene - Jason DeFord, the Nashville area crossover singer-songwriter. It's imperative that we avoid confusion for our band that has been performing as JELLYROLL® for over 40 years."
At the time, they insisted that DeFord stop performing as Jelly Roll.
They continued, "Therefore, we have an obligation to inform the public that Mr. DeFord performing as "Jelly Roll" is misleading, and an infringement on our band's JELLYROLL® trademark. We have run into issues with our social media accounts, search engine optimization, Google Ads, as well as overall brand recognition."
They said in particular that Jelly Roll caused confusion when appearing in Philadelphia. The band had to explain to fans they weren't performing. They wrote, "The related promotion of his performance at the popular local Philadelphia Jingle Ball has caused confusion within our fan base resulting in multiple inquiries requesting information on the event. This is to clarify that the original JELLYROLL® is not part of this event."
Jelly Roll Refuses To Change His Name
When DeFord refused to change his name, the band decided to take things to court. The lawsuit claims the band has been performing under the name since 1980. Far from just an obscure band, they said they appeared twice at the White House playing for George W. Bush. The suit comes after sending a cease and desist letter to Jelly Roll to stop using the name.
The suit read, "Prior to the Defendant's recent rise in notoriety, a search of the name of Jellyroll... returned references to the Plaintiff. Now, any such search on Google returns multiple references to Defendant, perhaps as many as 18-20 references before any reference to Plaintiff's entertainment dance band known as Jellyroll can be found."
Obviously, Jelly Roll hasn't listened to the band Jellyroll's demands. It's unlikely given where DeFord is at in his career that he will change his name. The suit continues, "Despite his receipt of a demand to cease and desist using Plaintiff's registered service mark, Defendant has ignored this demand and continues to use Plaintiff's registered service mark knowing that it continues to irreparably harm Plaintiff but has nevertheless callously disregarded the rights of Plaintiff to his own service mark."
So far, DeFord hasn't publicly commented on the claims
