Country music star Jelly Roll recently swept the CMAs, survived a treacherous flying incident with his wife, Bunnie XO, and received four nominations for the upcoming ACMs. It's been both a successful and tumultuous start to the year for the "Need a Favor" artist. Now, the singer is facing a name-dispute lawsuit from Jellyroll, a Philadelphia-based wedding band. He was served on Monday, April 8.
Billboard obtained a complaint statement in which a team of attorneys for Jellyroll wrote that online searches for the name "Jellyroll" would once return many "references to the plaintiff." They argue that "now, any such search on Google returns multiple references to defendant...before any reference to...Jellyroll can be found."
They allege that there are "as many as 18-20 references" to performer Jelly Roll before internet users could find a search result for the wedding band. Since Jelly Roll propelled his way to bonafide country music stardom, it's grown increasingly difficult to search for, and therefore book and pay, the band.
Jellyroll, who debuted 45 years ago, gained a strong reputation among Philadelphia. The Inquirer wrote in 2019 that most of the city's residents have probably heard the band at some point in their lives. In fact, the publication went as far as to say that "Philly's horn-based party dance band is very possibly this city's most 'heard' group whose membership you couldn't identify."
The group's founder-trombonist Kurt Titchenell, said that the band is "the backdrop to the most important events in people's lives." Jellyroll have scored events like weddings, mitzvahs, community gatherings and are prominent members in the general cover band club scene. The band even performed twice for former President George W. Bush in 2007.
Jelly Roll, meanwhile, has used the moniker throughout his career as both a rapper and country singer, beginning with his debut mixtape, The Plain Shmear Tape, which he released in 2003. He has continued to use the name while his career skyrockets. Jelly Roll was nominated for Best New Artist and Best Country Duo/Group Performance at this year's Grammys.
Jelly Roll is currently on his The Beautiful Broken Tour with Warren Zeiders and Alexandra Kay. He recently released "Best for Me," a collaboration with rapper Joyner Lucas.
Titchenell claims that his attorneys sent a cease-and-desist letter to Jelly Roll in February, but "no resolution was reached." Jelly Roll's team appeared to take shots at the band as his counsel "inquired as to whether defendant really was in competition with plaintiff."
Jellyroll's team maintains that conversations with Jelly Roll have been unproductive, and are demanding that Jelly Roll now stop using the moniker altogether.
Titchenell's team wrote that Jelly Roll's team has continued to ignore their demands and continues to use Jellyroll's "registered service mark knowing that it continues to irreparably harm plaintiff." The statement continued, saying that Jelly Roll has "callously disregarded" Titchenell and Jellyroll the rights to their "own service mark."
