Neil Young sued over Chrome Hearts band name by fashion brand
Neil Young has been sued over the use of his band name Chrome Hearts by a luxury fashion label.
Earlier this year, Young released his first album with the Chrome Hearts, Talkin’ To The Trees, which arrived in June. They have also accompanied him on his European tour, including a headline set at Glastonbury, and the group are currently on the road in North America.
On September 11th, the luxury fashion brand Chrome Hearts made a filing in federal court in Los Angeles. The lawsuit alleges, “Defendants’ continued use of the confusingly similar name in commerce violates Chrome Hearts’ valuable intellectual property rights,” per Billboard.
The fashion brand, which has been active since 1988, also claimed in the legal filing, “Defendants have intentionally and knowingly capitalized off of confusion between the Chrome Hearts (trademarks) and the NYTCH name.”
Additionally, it is alleged in the legal document that Young has capitalised on the “unique and valuable” name they have established over the last number of decades.
They state in the filing that Young and his team were first alerted to their concerns over the trademark two months ago, and are now pleading with the musician to stop using the Chrome Hearts name. Elsewhere in the suit, they claimed, “Some clothing and apparel vendors have apparently already mistakenly assumed that there is a connection between NYTCH and Chrome Hearts, and are actively promoting (it).”
The band name is believed to be a reference to his 1976 song, ‘Long May You Run’, with Stephen Stills, which contains the following lyric, “With your chrome heart shining in the sun.”
Young is yet to comment on the lawsuit.
Earlier this month, Young and the Chrome Hearts shared their latest release, ‘Big Crime‘, which attacks the Trump administration. During the track, Young passionately sings, “Don’t need no fascist rules, Don’t want no fascist school, Don’t want soldiers on our streets, There’s big crime in DC at the White House.” He also adds, “No more money to the fascists, The billionaire fascists, Time to blackout the system.”
Young and the Chrome Hearts remain on tour in North America despite the lawsuit. Their next show is on September 15th at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.
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