Singer Jelly Roll is being sued by a band named…(wait for it)…Jellyroll.
PEOPLE reports that the wedding band Jellyroll has had its name since 1980 and is alleging trademark infringement. The band suing is from Pennsylvania and has performed “celebratory and charitable events” for over 40 years.
The lawsuit filed in federal court on April 8 asks Jelly Roll (aka Jason Bradley DeFord) to stop using the name. They trademarked the name in 2010 and renewed the paperwork in 2019.
About Jelly Roll
As for the Jelly Roll that we've grown to know recently, he was born in 1984. He claims his mother gave him his name when he was a small child, and around 2010, he adopted the catchy stage name. He's known for the songs Son of a Sinner, Save Me, and Need a Favor. The singer had a drug addiction at one point in his life and served time in prison. However, his past helped inspire the music that he's now famous for.
The name sounds like it's potentially hurting business from Jelly Roll, who are concerned about searches online for those wanting to hire them for a gig.
“Prior to the Defendant's recent rise in notoriety, a search for the name of Jellyroll on most search engines, and particularly Google, returned references to the Plaintiff,” the suit reads.
“Now, any 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,” it continues.
It makes you wonder if any bakeries have the same concerns for individuals looking for a scrumptious jelly roll for a dessert? Anyway…
This fiasco led to a cease-and-desist letter from band member Kurt L. Tichenell to “various email addresses believed to be associated with” Jelly Roll.
This probably won't deter the famous musician, and it's unlikely he'll be changing his name anytime soon. Jelly Roll is riding high despite this lawsuit. He has just won three CMT Awards, Biography reports. This is the second year he's scored some awards.
He won for Performance of the Year, Male Video of the Year, and overall Video of the Year for his hit song, Need a Favor. Beyond that, he performed at the event and was nominated as Best New Artist at the 2024 Grammy Awards.
He told CBS, “I was shaking. I was just overwhelmed with emotions taking that walk [to the stage], Gayle. I started crying because I thought about the whole year…I just thought, ‘Man, it's amazing what God can do in a year.'”
He's gearing up for a massive arena tour involving 37 stops. It starts in Salt Lake City on August 27. The tattooed artist will hit major cities, such as L.A., New Orleans, NYC, Atlanta, and Philadelphia.
All this said, let's hope Jelly Roll doesn't start doing weddings. That could be detrimental to his fight against this current lawsuit.
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