Hard Life, formerly Easy Life, tackle Easy Jet dispute on comeback single ‘Tears’
After a legal dispute with airline Easy Jet in 2023, Leicestershire group Easy Life reluctantly agreed to change their name, but their future looked uncertain. Following months of silence, they are back as Hard Life with the comeback single, ‘Tears’.
While the legal battle against the international conglomerate was understandably challenging for the group, and singer Murray Matravers was labelled a “brand thief” by Easy Group, the parent company of Easy Jet, the band have vowed to carry on — albeit under a new alias.
Rather than avoid conversation around the topic, Matravers tackles the subject on ‘Tears’, which even sees him namecheck Easy Group owner, Stellios Haji-Ioannou. He sings, “It’s a hard life, I can’t lie, It’s been a rush, In the hard times, Lucky I got friends that I trust, It was easy in my twenties, Now I’ve gotta lawyer up, Gimme air miles or a fair trial, Stellios.”
The unwanted situation, which caused the band to rebrand rather than fight in the courts, could have led to Hard Life being full of sour grapes on ‘Tears’, but instead, over a sun-soaked beat, Matravers takes the experience in his stride as he defiantly bounces back and shares his side of the story.
In a statement, the frontman explained: “Since our pretty public run-in with the well-known airline, my life has been turned upside down a little bit. Everything has been on hold. All of us have had to reassess what the band means to us and come to terms with the idea that everything has a beginning, a middle and indeed, an end.”
He also discussed “the naive optimism we had in Easy Life” which Matravers says “has been swapped for something more raw and, I suppose, authentic.” The new track was written while he was “itting with my thoughts and going backwards and forwards with IP lawyers”.
In his own words, ‘Tears’ “highlights the absurdity of the situation as well as thanking the people who have had my back throughout this whole ordeal. Of course, this song makes me smile, and I suppose that is my way of processing.”
After bidding farewell to Easy Life with two last-minute shows in London and Leicester in October, the group have kept their heads below water. Now, ‘Tears’ confirms their return, and while no shows have been announced at this stage, it seems likely fans won’t have to wait an eternity for Hard Life to make their live debut.
While they may no longer be known as Easy Life, their trademark sound remains in-tact, even if it is being delivered under the guise of a new moniker.
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