The solo musician Jelly Roll — two words — has come out on top in a trademark lawsuit filed by a Philadelphia wedding band named Jellyroll, one word.
As previously reported, Jellyroll, the name of a wedding band led by musician Kurt Titchenell, had accused “Save Me” singer Jelly Roll, born Jason DeFord, of trademark infringement. But a Tuesday court filing obtained by ABC News stated that Titchenell was voluntarily dropping the lawsuit without prejudice, which means he won’t be refiling it in the future.
Billboard reports that Titchenell claimed in a statement that he’d reached an “amicable agreement” with the award-winning singer and that he’d continue using the name Jellyroll Band for his wedding business.
The court documents connected to the suit being dropped don’t mention anything about a settlement, and Jelly Roll’s lawyer doesn’t appear to have signed them. Titchenell’s lawyer, Stephen Levin, tells ABC Audio, “Mr. DeFord’s lawyer did not sign the dismissal because Mr. DeFord was never served with the lawsuit. We were already in discussions with Mr. DeFord’s representatives when the suit was filed and thus there was no immediate need to serve Mr. DeFord.”
He added, “Suffice it to say that the matter was amicably resolved to the satisfaction of both parties.”
As previously reported, Titchenell’s initial complaint claimed that his band had been performing under the name Jellyroll since 1980; he trademarked the name in 2010. Jelly Roll the singer, who got his nickname from his mother, began releasing mixtapes under that name in 2003. Titchenell claims that by using the name, Jelly Roll was violating his trademark.
The suit sought a court order to stop Jelly Roll from using the name, saying that his continued use of it would “irreparably harm” Titchenell and cause “actual confusion, mistake, and deception” in the marketplace.
(This story, originally published on July 9, 2024, has been updated to include comments from Keith Titchener’s attorney.)
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