Ever wondered why FKA Twigs is called that?
Born Tahliah Debrett Barnett, it apparently all comes from the nickname “Twigs” which her mates gave her for the sound of her cracking joints.
She went by just that for a little bit, but ended up chucking ‘FKA’ (Formerly Known As) onto the front of it after a trademark dispute with 90s indie duo The Twigs.
Plus, TDB Twigs just doesn’t really have a ring to it.
The dispute was way back in 2013, but the fire just keeps on burning.
FKA Twigs has apparently filed a lawsuit against the band after they kept on sending her cease-and-desist letters over the trademark of her stage name.
Rolling Stone has had a look over some court documents where FKA reportedly offered the band $15,000 to allow their musical entities to “co-exist” after she acknowledged there was some room for confusion.
The Twigs, who are fronted by twin sisters Laura Good and Linda Good, rejected the offer, and so here we are 13 years later.
FKA kept on moving while the Twigs pretty much disappeared, and with a difference of about 3.2 million monthly listeners on Spotify, the document says it’s inconceivable the acts would ever be confused given they operate in “entirely different commercial ecosystems”.
She’s also alleging the twinnies “threatened to seek an injunction preventing Barnett from using her stage name, demanded a significant seven-figure payout to release any alleged claims against Barnett.”
Basically, they reckon FKA shouldn’t be able to use her name until they receive compensation for the similarities to theirs – it gets heated when someone’s getting those Spotify royalties and you’re not.
FKA wants it taken to jury trial so the rights and use of the name can be put to bed once and for all.
More to come it seems.
