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Neil Young and his new accompanying band, the Chrome Hearts, see a trademark lawsuit the well -known luxury brand Chrome Hearts.
Allegations by Chrome Hearts
The Chrome Hearts brand has been active since the late eighties and is known for high -quality clothing, jewelry and accessories. Young Chrome Hearts was founded at the end of last year, published the album “Talkin to the Trees” in June and toured through North America extensively in summer.
In her lawsuit, Chrome Hearts claims that they “have not given a license” or Young “have given any form of permission to use the intellectual property of Chrome Hearts”. It also says: “The defendants have copied the registered brands of Chrome Hearts to take advantage of Chrome Hearts’ reputation on the market.”
In addition to Young, his band members Micah Nelson, Corey McCormick, Anthony Logerfo and Spooner Oldham as well as Young’s production company The Other Shoe Productions are also called defendant. A spokesman for Young and the Chrome Hearts initially did not respond to an inquiry about comment.
By using the name Chrome Hearts and the sale of merchandising articles with the imprint “Neil Young and the Chrome Hearts”, it is “probably that confusion in the market arises”, the lawsuit. Young Merch design deviates significantly from the typical Chrome-Hearts logos, but the brand points out that third-party providers have already incorrectly accepted and actively advertised a connection between Nytch and Chrome Hearts.
Dispute over merchandising and use of calls
The lawsuit contains screenshots of T-shirts sold online that combine photos of Young with Chrome-Hearts-like logos. In addition, the band is deliberately connected to the luxury brand in marketing texts.
An online text cited in the procedure is, for example: “Because it is Neil Young, is it, the voice of a generation, the guy who makes you feel something. And Chrome Hearts is serious. This is Edgy, rebellious, luxury. But then you think of the two together-the clash of aesthetics suddenly makes sense.”
Chrome Hearts explains that they have already sent a letter to Young’s representatives about their trademark rights and “asked respectfully to the fact that Mr. Young and Nytch fail to use any further use of the Chrome-Hearts brands”. Nevertheless, the band continues to tour under the name, including an upcoming concert in Los Angeles – the headquarters of Chrome Hearts.
The brand is now calling for an injunction that would immediately prohibit Young’s use of the name. In addition, it demands compensation at a non -mentioned amount.