Last week, Scarlett Johansson announced that she had formed a supergroup called the Singles with Este Haim (of HAIM), Holly Miranda, Kendra Morris and Julia Haltigan. It hasn't taken them long to to hit a stumbling block, since another band also called the Singles are taking legal action over the name.
The band in question are a rock outfit based in Los Angeles who have been around since 1999, in which time they have released albums and toured extensively under the name the Singles. They apparently played around 100 shows in 2014, and Exclaim! has covered the group in the past.
They have now hired legal council and filed a cease and desist with allegations of trademark infringement. They're demanding that Johansson's group stop using the name, and they will consider further legal action if necessary.
"I woke up one morning and learned from the news that our band name was literally just taken by someone else as their own. It's hard to believe that any musician would do something like that to another band," band founder Vincent Frederick said in a statement. "The Singles has been my life for the past 16 years. We have worked so incredibly hard to make it a success."
According to a press release, fans have been surprised and confused since Johansson formed her new band and unveiled the single "Candy."
Frederick said, "I don't understand it. Our band, the Singles, has an account on nearly all social media sites and our music is available in record shops, on iTunes, SoundCloud, and other websites. Just a simple search on Google would have revealed that 'The Singles' was already a band name being used by another pop/rock band — our band."
The irony is that neither of these bands are actually the first band to be called the Singles. A quick Google search uncovers an Australian band from the '80s with the same name.
Another ironic twist on the story: when Johansson first began talking about her new band a couple of years ago, she referred to them as "the One and Only Singles." Clearly, they aren't the "one and only" band with this name.
Meanwhile, Johansson's supergroup are releasing their single "Candy" on Federal Prism.
The band in question are a rock outfit based in Los Angeles who have been around since 1999, in which time they have released albums and toured extensively under the name the Singles. They apparently played around 100 shows in 2014, and Exclaim! has covered the group in the past.
They have now hired legal council and filed a cease and desist with allegations of trademark infringement. They're demanding that Johansson's group stop using the name, and they will consider further legal action if necessary.
"I woke up one morning and learned from the news that our band name was literally just taken by someone else as their own. It's hard to believe that any musician would do something like that to another band," band founder Vincent Frederick said in a statement. "The Singles has been my life for the past 16 years. We have worked so incredibly hard to make it a success."
According to a press release, fans have been surprised and confused since Johansson formed her new band and unveiled the single "Candy."
Frederick said, "I don't understand it. Our band, the Singles, has an account on nearly all social media sites and our music is available in record shops, on iTunes, SoundCloud, and other websites. Just a simple search on Google would have revealed that 'The Singles' was already a band name being used by another pop/rock band — our band."
The irony is that neither of these bands are actually the first band to be called the Singles. A quick Google search uncovers an Australian band from the '80s with the same name.
Another ironic twist on the story: when Johansson first began talking about her new band a couple of years ago, she referred to them as "the One and Only Singles." Clearly, they aren't the "one and only" band with this name.
Meanwhile, Johansson's supergroup are releasing their single "Candy" on Federal Prism.
