Jelly Roll Versus Jellyroll

With a name like Jelly Roll, you would think you would be pretty safe as far as trademark rights.  I mean, maybe a donut or pastry company might be offended but another band?  Really?

It's true.  Jelly Roll is currently being sued by a band member from Pennsylvania who claims his band had the name first.  In fact, he claims the group has had the name since before Jelly Roll was born.

On April 8, a lawsuit was filed in federal court.  The court documents state that Jellyroll band member Kurt L. Titchenell is asking Jason Bradley DeFord, better know to the world as Jelly Roll, to stop using the name.

Lawyers for Titchenell claim that the Pennsylvania wedding band has been using the name since 1980.  They went on to file trademark paperwork in 2010 and renewed the famous name trademark in 2019.

The wedding based band claims that they have been "performing at celebratory and charitable events" in the United States since at least 1980.

The Jelly Roll we know has been busy since 1984 when he was born.  He dropped out of high school, but then went on to get his college degree.  He has visited jail more than 40 times and mainly for drug charges.

He got his life turned around, even speaking to Congress about addiction and fentanyl.  He is now a Grammy nominated, 6-time CMT Music Award winning artist.  He has released more than 20 albums over several genres and has had six songs on the Billboard Hot 100.

Unfortunately for Jelly Roll, this recent lawsuit is not the first he has been named as a defendant.  In 2013 Waffle House issued a Cease and Desist letter regarding the use of their logo.  Ultimately, the case was settled out of court, and the artist changed the cover of the album.

With fame and fortune also usually comes some amount of trouble.  The case of his name will be interesting as most Country Music fans have only ever known him as "Jelly Roll" - a loving nickname given to him by his mother.