Inside Drake's Members-Only Track That Is Under Infringement Suits; Explained (2024)

The God’s Plan rapper has floated back up on headlines as he is facing a lawsuit filed against him by the jacket brand Members Only for infringement issues.

Drake (YouTube/Drake/Hotline Bling Official Video)

The Kendrick Lamar versus Drake feud had only subsided when the latter found himself entangled in another controversy. The God’s Plan rapper has floated back up on headlines as he is facing a lawsuit filed against him by the jacket brand Members Only for infringement issues.

The New York-based clothing brand is suing the rapper for multiple trademark violations, and claimsthat even though Drake has released the merchandise on behalf of his 2023 single, Members Only, he is not allowed to use the phrase on apparel items.

Clothing brand sues Drake for trademark infringement

Members Only’s mother brand JR Apparel is going after Drake, 37, for dropping his similarly-named merchandise months ago. The Members Only tour merchandise, mainly T-shirts, was created by the rapper’s Away From Home Touring Inc. production soon after his latest It’s All A Blur tour ended in April.

In a New York lawsuit filed on Tuesday, June 11, JR Apparel accused Drake of trademark infringement, trademark dilution, and unfair competition. “The fact that ‘Members Only’ is a song on Drake’s album For All the Dogs does not obviate the likelihood of confusion or give [him] a license to use our client’s ‘Members Only’ marks in such a confusing manner, particularly on or in connection with apparel items,” the lawsuit by plaintiff’s JR Apparel World LLC stated, per a report by Complex.

They pointed out in the complaint how Drizzy’s “infringing” merch could potentially confuse, deceive, and mistake consumers for the original Members Only branded T-shirts as they are “identical, overlapping” and very similar to the JR Apparel goods. The merch products were listed on eBay and the brand requested the court that Drake be prohibited from selling the products, per the source.

The Canadian rapper’s Members Only merch is based on his track of the same name from his latest album, For All The Dogs. It dropped on October 2023 and features PARTYNEXTDOOR with lyrics about his exes and past relationships.

JR Apparel also claimed that they tried to resolve the infringement issues with Drake’s Away From Home Touring Inc. privately to avoid litigation but there was no compliance from him or his company.

Drake was in a legal lawsuit with Vogue

Drake’s infringement lawsuit with the iconic outerwear brand comes a year after a similar ordeal with Vogue’s parent brand, Condé Nast. The Hotline Bling singer and 21 Savage had settled a lawsuit filed by the leading media publisher in 2023 after they featured a fake Vogue magazine in Drake’s 2022 album, Her Loss.

The promotional stunts had the fake magazine showcasing a Drake/21 cover and mock-ups all over the issue. Condé Nast general counsel Will Bowes said in a statement then that Drake had “leveraged Vogue’s reputation” for his album promotions leading to confusion among the magazine’s loyal consumer base.

Condé Nast had sought $4 million in damages but the final settlement amount ordered by the court was not officially disclosed.

Although he addressed his understanding of creative endeavors often referencing the popular magazine available worldwide, as an inspiration, Bowes marked Drake’s case as a purposeful and aware intent to deceive the audience.

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