Last month, the country music group formerly known as Lady Antebellum changed their name to Lady A to be more racially sensitive, due to the apparent association of the word “antebellum” with slavery. (The Antebellum period in U.S. history generally refers to the time between the War of 1812 and the start of the Civil War.)
However, after a battle with blues singer Anita White, who goes by the name Lady A, the country band filed a lawsuit against the singer over her “attempt to enforce purported trademarks rights in a mark that Plaintiffs have held for more than a decade,” according to the suit.
On Saturday, White issued a lengthy statement blasting the Grammy-winning country band, in which White admitted that she asked for $10 million in total in order for the group to have the name; $5 million paid to her and another $5 million to charity.
The “demand” for the $10 million, according to a statement from the band, was one of the reasons they filed the suit against White.
“I was quiet for two weeks because I was trying to believe that it was going to be okay and that they would realize that it would be easier to just change their name, or pay me for my name,” White said, according to Pitchfork. “Five million dollars is nothing, and I’m actually worth more than that, regardless of what they think.”
“But here we go again with another white person trying to take something from a Black person, even though they say they’re trying to help,” added White. “If you want to be an advocate or an ally, you help those who you’re oppressing. And that might require you to give up something because I am not going to be erased.”
In the fiery statement, White ripped the country music singers for trying to “look woke” for their fans, instead of truly caring about progressive racial issues. “I will not allow Lady Antebellum to obliterate me and my career so they can look ‘woke’ to their fans,” she said.
“It is absurd that Lady Antebellum has chosen to show its commitment to racial equality by taking the name of a Black woman, particularly in this time when we are reminded every day to ‘Say Her Name.’ It is one more demonstration of what continues to be taken away from us in the present,” said White in the statement. “Given the way that Hillary, Charles, and Dave have treated me, I am not surprised that they used the name Lady Antebellum for so long or that their cure is to adopt a name that is only less overtly racist. The A in their name stands for Antebellum and always will. If they are truly committed to racial equality, why do they want to maintain that association, especially when it means making a public, intentional stand to disregard me and my rights?”
“I do not want to part with it,” the blues singer said of the name Lady A, though the country band is not asking her to part with the name. “It is particularly painful to me, as a Black woman, to lose my name in THIS time and place so Lady Antebellum can use it as shorthand to celebrate a time and place connected to and very heavily reliant upon slavery.”
“I asked for $5 million to compensate me for this loss, and to help me rebuild under a new name. I also asked that they donate $5 million to a charity so that we could work together to promote racial equality,” she added. “It was my impression from our communications that this would appeal to Hillary, Charles, and Dave. I guess I was wrong.”
You can view the complete statement, below (via Pitchfork):
Statement from Anita White. The real Lady A.
Black Lives, Names, Experiences, Work, Art – They All Matter.
July 10, 2020, Seattle, WA
I first heard about Lady Antebellum’s planned name change after they went public on June 11, 2020, at which point I was shocked and taken aback. During initial calls with the members of the band—Hillary Scott, Charles Kelley, and Dave Haywood—I hoped that we could reach an agreement that left both sides whole. Lady Antebellum understood that their use of “Antebellum” was offensive and that their adoption of Lady A harms me, as I have been using the name professionally for over 30 years.
Though they recognized their impact, Lady Antebellum has not been receptive to my proposals for correcting their infringement, unfortunately. It has already been demonstrated why co-existence will simply not work. My fans used to be able to listen to my music on streaming services; now they struggle to find me. Due to Lady Antebellum’s massive rebranding efforts, Lady Antebellum has erased me from every platform. Lady Antebellum has used their wealth and influence to intimidate and bully me into submission without offering any real recompense for appropriating my name. It is now clear that their apologies, friendly texts, and playing on my love of God were just insincere gestures aimed at quieting me. Well, I will not be quiet any longer.
After being called out for taking my name, Lady Antebellum and their team of publicists and attorneys are doing what many folks of privilege do when asked to cease and desist bad behavior. Hillary, Charles, and Dave are attempting to change the narrative by minimizing my voice and belittling my experience as an artist – as if having a lot of money gives them permission to tread on my rights. I have worked too long and too hard to just give my name away.
The band’s decision to change their name to Lady A follows the trend of many other groups and organizations working to distance themselves from racism in the wake of the uprisings in this post-George Floyd world. Someone finally told them—or perhaps they knew all along and didn’t care until now—that their name reminds Black folks of just how much was taken from us in the past: our lives, freedom, languages, families, and, yes, our names. It is absurd that Lady Antebellum has chosen to show its commitment to racial equality by taking the name of a Black woman, particularly in this time when we are reminded every day to “Say Her Name.” It is one more demonstration of what continues to be taken away from us in the present. Given the way that Hillary, Charles, and Dave have treated me, I am not surprised that they used the name Lady Antebellum for so long or that their cure is to adopt a name that is only less overtly racist. The A in their name stands for Antebellum and always will. If they are truly committed to racial equality, why do they want to maintain that association, especially when it means making a public, intentional stand to disregard me and my rights?
Lady A is my identity—and it has been since 1987. I want to be able to freely use my brand that I spent decades building. I do not want to part with it. It is particularly painful to me, as a Black woman, to lose my name in THIS time and place so Lady Antebellum can use it as shorthand to celebrate a time and place connected to and very heavily reliant upon slavery. I asked for $5 million to compensate me for this loss, and to help me rebuild under a new name. I also asked that they donate $5 million to a charity so that we could work together to promote racial equality. It was my impression from our communications that this would appeal to Hillary, Charles, and Dave. I guess I was wrong.
Their refusal to come to an agreement that would be respectful of my work and my rights, however, has given me the clarity and the drive to not back down. Black lives, names, experiences, work, art—they all matter. Fellow independent artists have reached out to me to share their stories of name feuds that they lost because they were on the opposite side of big money and privilege. Not only will I not be one of them, but I am hopeful that this fight for what is rightfully mine will help those damaged by this type of bullying and erasure in the past, and that it will prevent it from happening in the future. I will not allow Lady Antebellum to obliterate me and my career so they can look “woke” to their fans.
