When Taylor Swift released 1989, she went on a trademarking binge. She ended up trademarking – or attempting to trademark – many of her song titles and lyrics, including “this sick beat,” “Welcome to New York” (I sh-t you not) and “1989”. It would be easy to kind of shrug it off and say that of course Taylor doesn’t want fake Swifty merch out there, destroying her brand. The problem is that in the past, she’s gone after small-businesses and Etsy artists for trademark infringement. Imagine you’re an Etsy artist who wants to use the phrase “Welcome to New York.” Seriously. Anyway, no surprise, Taylor is going on another trademarking binge for her new album. Yes, we’ll probably have to pay Taylor Swift every time we use the word Reputation™.
The “old” Taylor Swift may be dead, but the new one still wants to make a buck off her … TMZ has learned. T-Swift has filed to trademark a bunch of titles and catchphrases from her new album, “Reputation” — for instance, the line, “The old Taylor can’t come to the phone right now” from her single “Look What You Made Me Do” … as well as the song title itself.
According to the docs, she wants to use the lyrics on a ton of merchandise … like t-shirts, notebooks, guitar picks, jewelry, bags, and pretty much any other accessory a Swiftie could want.
We know Tay Tay’s touring soon — and now you have a better idea of what will be on her overpriced concert merch.
I imagine all of the little girls – ?? – will want the Look What You Made Me Do tote bags, t-shirts, keychains, hats, etc. But will adults? I have no idea. In previous years, I had a clearer idea of Taylor’s fanbase and who she was trying to appeal to with new music. She went from the darling of the country world to country-music royalty, and then aimed to widen her fanbase to more traditional pop-music audiences. She’s still one of the biggest things in music, obviously, but after hearing the first two singles off of Reputation, her pop music just seems… I don’t know, like she’s regressing somehow, instead of widening her audience, she’s really just appealing to her core base of petty Mean Girls.
In case you missed it, here’s the second single off Reputation, “…Ready For It?” Everyone thinks this is about the new guy, Joe Alwyn. How is it that no one thinks this is about Conor Kennedy????
Photos courtesy of Tay’s Instagram, Backgrid.
The phrase and her monetization of it are gross. This is tasteless.
How can you even trademark common phrases, maxims or prosaisms?
I think I’ll trademark “fuck right off, you knobhead”. That would stop most of Britain expressing displeasure for the next decade or so.
I want to use that in one of my cases. May I?
Mais bien sur!
Im wondering that too. But those laws are made for wealthy people and corporations. There is a lot of copyright/patent trolling where people dont even really invent something but just use it to sue people who actually do something.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright_troll
I mean I can see something like “Swiftmas” and Taylor should certainly be able to shut people down making money with her face and her name but phrases? GTFO.
That also goes for other musicians releasing albums that are called 1989. You shouldnt be able to trademark that.
Ooh Brit swearing. My fave: tosser
Is “wanker” cussing? I love that one.
Scratch that. I’ll trademark cockwomble and wankstain.
I’m trademarking “fuck the fuck off you arsewipe” – my own personal favourite expression of mocking distain immediately, and as soon as I can get “what a pile of old bollocks” in there as well I will. English as spoke by the natives is nothing if not ‘robust’.
On behalf of the Yanks, I’d like to submit personal favorites “doucherocket” and “twatwaffle” to the office for their consideration.
Didn’t Trump trademark “You’re fired”, which is such a commonly used phrase.
I don’t get the law behind being able to trade mark something so everyday, like “that’s hot” (Paris Hilton).
@Sixer Once you get that trademarked, I would totally buy a shirt that says, “fuck right off, you knobhead.”
That’s great! Haha!
That’s not exactly how trade marks work. You cannot stop people from using the phrase or common word unless it is used as a trade mark in relation to the same or similar goods and services as those for which you obtained protection.
Steampug is right. You can trademark its use in certain categories eg no one else can put it on a Tshirt. Beyonce does this, among others.
I remember when Paris Hilton tried to trademark “That’s hot.” I was disgusted …How can you actually have the gall to claim that a VERY unoriginal, ubiquitous, decades old saying is officially your own? You are right, it is beyond narcissistic, and Taylor is every bit as bad as Paris.
If you want a cool story of an instance where trademarking actually turned against a very Big Money company, look up why Wendy’s can’t open any restaurants in Europe.
Spoiler alert: it’s because of this one guy who has one tiny snackrestaurant in a small city in the Netherlands. He trademarked the restaurant name ‘Wendy’s’ for the Benelux back in the 90’s, before the big Wendy’s got to it. They’ve been fighting him with expensive lawyers in court for almost two decades but they keep losing. He was first after all, and he won’t budge because of principle. It’s amazing.
http://imgur.com/gallery/uVYtL
(or, if you can read Dutch: https://www.volkskrant.nl/4500134)
Agreed, 100%.
On a superficial note, it comes off as hella narcissistic to trademark common phrases as if you invented them yourself.
Shambles, I would not call it superficial; I would call it insightful.
We made her do it!
Thanks, Third Ginger. I’m a wee bit sensitive about how my comments are coming off right now, especially on TS threads, because it got a little crazy up in here on Sunday. Lol
exactly. She is not bloody Shakespeare.
Shambles: It’s not you. Some of the posters were brutal on Sunday. Seriously, this is Taylor flipping Swift. Even though that man is president, we still have free speech. Tell it like it is!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Nancy,
Big hugs to you. Thanks for keeping me sane during that sh!tstorm. 😉
It’s not narcissistic, it is just a business move. She might determine which phrases go on merch, but overall I bet her legal team handles this. It’s pretty typical.
Shambles, a couple of posts now have included details about the Swift fans posting here that usually never do and their new ip addresses. They’re just trolls.
Shambles – you asked a question/made a comment, people schooled you on why you were wrong and then instead of just saying “sorry I was unaware her friend had Okayed the song” you launch into a new argument about how saying “give everything” is problematic and when that argument was also shut down you just then proceeded to dismiss the opinions of “non-regular”s which you rightfully got shut down on again.
Don’t you always go in on Tay for playing the victim? Pot please meet Kettle.
@Erica V: Her argument was never actually shut down though, people just said they interpreted the lyric differently and some random dude came in to mansplain how shattered the human female is if the first person she has sex with doesn’t end up her soulmate. You’re entitled to have the more generous interpretation of your girl’s lyrics; Other people are entitled to side-eye lyrics that imply that virginity is all a woman has to offer (and that she’ll be ruined if she doesn’t get love and a happily ever after in exchange for that gift) when they come from a starlet who has a history of making a song to slut-shame her ex’s new gf and talking about how her not performing on stage in a bra makes her a ‘better female role model’ than other women in the music industry.
Can I trademark, “Taylor stands for Terrible And Yapping Lump Of Rancor”?
@ third ginger – *wanker” is most definitely a word not usually heard in polite company!
Uh OH. My little girl and I are quite the cursers [in private] Her favorite and affectionate admonition to me is “Mom, you need to calm the f… down!” She says this as she pats my wrinkled hand.
When she was about nine, my daughter looked at me disapprovingly and said “mum, do you have to say ‘bastard’ quite so loudly?” Now many years later she hardly swears, whereas I continue to do so.
Yea I’m torn on this because I understand wanting to protect what you’ve created and be able to monetize it but when it’s a phrase like “Welcome to New York” and has nothing to do with your song, I have an issue with it. “Look What You Made Me Do” is a pretty specific phrase so I’m guessing they won’t be sending C&D’s to anyone for that at least lol
I agree. Specific to the song I’m fine with but I found it distasteful when she tried it with Welcome to NY and 1989. Literally the city and the year I was born. No girl
I dont even see why it would be ok to trademark it for a song. Every musician should be allowed to name a song like that or sing that line. Why would any lyric itself belong to one person?
As long as its clear it not Led Zeppelin you should be able to record a song called Stairway to Heaven.
There’s a Stairway to heaven by the O’jays. Magnificent song. It was my wedding song.
You are right, you can’t copyright a song title.
Trademarks are slightly different, in that they protect something used in branding and/or commerce, rather than an artistic work. If no one before Team Swift has used those phrases on goods or services, they are able to be trademarked (I think).
If I wanted to sell ladders as Stairway to Heaven Inc. I might be able to, assuming LZ didn’t have that brilliant idea before I did.
Back in the day Paris Hilton wanted trademark the term “thats hot”, appatently ypu can trademark anything
Dear TS: If a phrase predates your creation and has a cultural life well beyond your creation, you’re an asshole to try to ‘trademark’ it, full stop. –Love, G.
PS: Asshole.
This song has been even more annoying since I watched The Defiant Ones documentary (HIGHLY recommended btw). During the episode featuring the LA Riots there is graffiti on the wall that says “Look at what you caused.” Juxtaposing that with Taylor’s song was just a head shake. People exploding over policy brutality and systemic oppression versus a woman reaching the end of the road because people are upset with her over things she’s actually done/said (the injustice! Lol) Differently levels of seriousness, but it just made me laugh.
Thanks for the documentary rec HH.
And the irrelevance and pettiness of TS is so much more highlighted when juxtaposed with the world as it is currently. We don’t have time for this shit! Some might say there is space for unserious things, but when it is a mega star taking over media space like TS tends to you really have to question priorities.
I agree with you and I’ve been waiting a long time to see if anybody would make this type of point.
Back in the ye olden days of a solid economy when none of our wars were yet biting us in the back (at least not that most of us noticed), life was good and it was sellable to be bubblegum and poppy and up your own backside. Nowadays we’ve been thrust into a miserable and bitter reality and I don’t think that stuff works anymore but…it still is? Is she reflecting our current zeitgeist of glamorous rich people misery and finger-pointing? I really wonder what’s happening in the world and what page people are on sometimes.
I understand why the dichotomy of the two situations bothers you. That said, Taylor is just a pop singer with a catchy pop song that she will monetize to her benefit like most business minded individuals. I know she irritated people, I’ve been one of them myself but it is just pop music, that is it.
As far as the “bullying” lyrics, I don’t really see it that way. Pop songs, for the most part, aren’t meant to be think pieces. They are meant to convey universally relatable themes, often being in love or broken-hearted, to a catchy tune. They aren’t literal. For instance, Bruno Mars isn’t really going to step on a grenade or die for you (thank goodness cause I want to watch him drop charisma and sex for years)! Britney Spears didn’t really “Oops, do it again”. Justin Timberlake didn’t really bring “sexyback”, ahem, Prince had never left! Kanye doesn’t really seem like he was on top of the “golddigger” situation.
I know these people build and promote personas. I can see where Swifts is objectionable to some. In the end though, she’s just a pop singer albeit an enormously successful one.
Anyway, I adore Mars, Pink, Mary J. Blige, and many others. I like Taylor more now than before. I used to swing from like to extreme dislike of Swift but I do enjoy her music. I’ll go all in and admit I like several of Beiber’s Purpose tunes although his personal life has been messy AF.
Meh, most musicians and entertainers give me pause with things they say or do at times. As long as I don’t find it extremely harmful or criminal, I can usually continue to enjoy their work. Woody Allen is a definite no, never in a million years as is Roman Pulanski and Charlie Sheen, Chris Brown and others.
However, she’s marketed herself as a role model while the other people you mention haven’t. It’s one thing where the stuff is marketed towards an adult audience. Taylor’s audience is primarily young girls; their parents like her because they think of her as wholesome and nice (even though she’s unkind in her past songs, too, but that’s another discussion for another time).
Yes. Pop songs are not meant to be thought about too hard, and the vast majority of people certainly don’t do so. They don’t analyze the lyrics (if they even get them right) beyond what’s needed to sing along. Nor do they really pay a whole lot of attention to the circumstances surrounding the production of the song or the artist.
I personally actively avoid reading interviews or articles about artists I like because they invariably ruin the music for me by whinging on about their BS opinions or saying really, really stupid shit or doing not great things. If I know too much about them it spoils the enjoyment for me, knowing that the person behind this lovely song is actually a huge dick/idiot/wannabe.
@Wren, I completely get that. BTW, never, ever,ever 🙂 look up the guy that wrote the lyrics to, “you light up my life” by Debbie Boone, if you are even old enough to remember it. I will never hear that song the same way again.
@ohgee, she is probably trying to evolve her brand. I don’t know if it will work. I really don’t care who she markets herself to although her songs cater to those younger than me, no doubt. We all know it’s wrong to say, “Look what you made me do”. Kids know this too if any parenting is taking place. To me, it’s just a snapshot of an emotion many of us feel briefly knowing full well that we are responsible. I mea, it is just a pop song!
Yes, most pop songs are not meant to be over-anazlyed. But Taylor has built her entire career on blind-item songs, banking on the fact that we’ll spend our time analyzing them to figure out who she’s writing about. She has always done this. So the fact that we’re thinking hard about her pop music is her doing, entirely.
I definitely get what you’re saying. However, the difference between LWYMMD and the examples you’ve given is that all of those were simply catchy pop songs, with no back story and no references. Pop songs aren’t meant to be think pieces, and yet think pieces, posts, etc written about Swift’s video have been liked by TS herself. So this particular song has meaning. A petty one at that. LWYMMD is probably more comparable to JT’s “Cry Me a River.” That song very clearly had meaning in reference to a specific incident with a specific person (although he was actually the wronged party in that instance).
Yes thank you!!! I heard the song and I’m like, why is she dragging Connor Kennedy? The age lyric got me. This song makes that relationship even creepier than it already was.
It has to be about the Kennedy. She’s talking about island breezes (Nantucket), being a “robber” (cradle robber) and “younger than my exes but he acts like a man”
Just a thought, but maybe Taylor should go into business instead of blatantly selling music. She’s not getting any credibility as an artist with this kind of strategy.
She is in business. Her music is just the advertising for all the crap she sells. She doesn’t need to be an artist as long as there are little girls buying her merchandise.
Well yeah, she doesn’t give a toss about being taken seriously as an artist with all this crap.
Completely contradicting that bizarre line in her publicist’s release to People “Taylor is very talented and wants the focus to be on her music,” if that’s the case why is she selling like cheap tat?
“Her music is just the advertising for all the crap she sells.”
Word.
She should trademark “Overrated” on every piece of merch that has her name.
The idea that she be considered talented any more than marginally above average is a joke; as is the notion that she is a business genius. Her corporate label grooms and coaches her, gives her sound studios, engineers, producers to “create” and polish her sound for optimal consumption.
They, corporate label investors, probably hold a majority share in TS or “her” trademark. They are the ones that implement all these money schemes. I understand her parents got her a good deal with a fair amount of control. But she is still contracted and is pretty much a yes-girl to all their plans. She might be able to contribute ideas and objections, but with or without her input, they will put out THEIR TS-trademark merch regardless.
Trademarking – or trying to – everything they can is a pretty standard celeb move, I think. From words to their physical appearance. Katie Perry tried to trademark her bettie page/rockabilly look. That’s why I always side eyed Tay’s victimhood over Kanye’s Famous vid – wacky as he may be, there is no way that video was released with all those trademarked famous faces without getting their permission/release first. I wonder what the money part of it is though – I assume there was some money was paid for the privilege. Or maybe not – after all it was hella good publicity. Tay’s still milking that cow lol.
He didn’t. Some of them, like George Bush, expressed shock. And he said he wanted people to sue him.
@lightpurple Well, he wanted people to sue him or he dared them to sue him because he had the receipts? I think Tay would have sued him for it, just as she sued the d.j. I got on this line of thinking because Walter Becker died a couple of days ago and he was quoted saying Kanye wrote him a personal letter asking permission to sample a Steely Dan track in 2007 or something. Which suggest Kanye gets the legal side in order, maybe he’s not such a loose cannon in that area at least. As for Bush not sure what the law is using a president’s image as opposed to a celeb’s. Maybe someone who knows will weigh in.
@Giulia, he had no receipts. Amber said she’s still waiting for the phone call. Others have explained the issues with celebrity likenesses. Several have said they didn’t want to give him more publicity.
@Tulip Garden, I give him no pass for that video. It was vile filth, a rape fantasy, and he was fully aware of that. None of those women deserved to be portrayed that way. The excuses people make for him puzzle me. But I agree that his marriage seems to have separated him from the more stabilizing influences in his life.
Kanye is really gross to me as well. We can say what we like about Taylor, but imo, he’s put her in tough spots many times, from the VMA hijacking speech, to making the Famous song and the gross video, to even the Snapchat reveal from Kim. Imo, Taylor has handled each very very poorly, but I don’t think she started any of it. Each time, it was Kanye or his people poking the proverbial bear. If he never even wrote that ridiculous song, I don’t think everything that followed would have happened. Sure it was nice he talked with her about his song, but clearly, he’d release it with or without her blessing.
While I do think how people react to tough situations can define them, like how Taylor poorly reacted to each situation and it bit her in the ass a few times, I also think Kanye needlessly puts Taylor in unfortunate situations and he’s to blame imo for most of the drama. To me, in each of the situations, she reacted, but she didn’t instigate. Taylor is annoying AF, but I genuinely don’t think she’s a Trump supporter like people want to pin on her. She’s complicit in her silence, but what’s even more gross to me is seeing Kanye declare not voting in one of the most crucial elections, declaring his support for Trump, then announcing he’s running for office in 2020. While she didn’t openly declare her support for either side, she encouraged young people to go vote and not sit this election out.
Sometimes we are so blind in our bias that when you lay out the things that happened, it doesn’t appear to me Taylor is the worse of the two. Tbh, I findvthem both to have mental health issues. They’re both surrounded by yes men and enablers. Neither wants to be wrong, but I will give it to Kanye, he did apologize for the VMAs thing. I find Taylor to have the bigger pride that makes her less humbling. Anyway, they both need to go away and just stop associating with the other.
I dont think you would need their permission. They are all famous and if paps are allowed to film and photograph them then I am sure you are allowed to have their likenesses in a video. I mean it would also shut down SNL. Trump could sue them.
As I understand it, not claiming expertise here at all – but a you don’t have a right to privacy on the street as far as taking photos goes. Nor would you if someone used your image in a work of art, since that is free speech i think. BUT, those rules change in connection with commericial use, which I think a music video definitely is – it’s essentially a commericial to sell the record.
Maybe, the fact that everyone knew these were only “likenesses”, not the real people, stymied potential lawsuits. I will say that I found that video to be far more offensive than Swift’s recent output. It was downright creepy to me. I kind of gave Kanye a pass because that man isn’t well, imo. Now if I were one of his targets like Amber Rose, I don’t think i would be that generous. And kim? Imo, one of Kenya’s worst decisions because the relationship seems to have alienated him from people he admired (The Carters) and I don’t think Kim or her family have the knowledge of desire to help Kanye.
Kanye frustrates me to no end. I pity him for the loss of his beloved mother who I think grounded him. Her death may well have been the spark that ignited what I see as his downward spiral. I’ve dealt personally with the mentally ill in my family. It is exhausting, heartbreaking, and can take over your life. I hope he gets healthier and well.
Laws surrounding the use of the likeness of public figures can be a lot more flexible than private citizens depending on the state. Shows like SNL can get away with their material because it falls under the category of satire, which is protected under the law – and especially in regards to government figures. The crux of the matter is proving the “exploitation” part of the claim. Kanye can be producing music for financial gain while simultaneously using the medium for artistic expression. A court would have to decide what his intent was and whether his plaintiffs suffered legitimate repercussions to his use of their likeness.
Thank you, Veronica. I guess I just have trouble viewing Tay as a victim. To me she is strong, very strong. This is a woman who put Spotify in its place and who won her suit against the d.j. So it just struck me odd that she wouldn’t sue for using her likeness to suggest she participated in an orgy. Maybe she decided it just wasn’t worth the fight.
I hear she is also trademarking the phrases “he’s the one” and “it’s really serious.”
Game, set, match!
Good God she sucks and is bland af .
That kind of generic phrase won’t stand as a trademark any more than Welcome to New York did. Blue Ivy is a name. Look What You Made Me Do is something every abuser tells their victim – she can sue the abusers then. Her lawyers should enjoy that. 🙄
Blue Ivy is a name of a company. Beyonce lost her attempt to trademark the name. She is trying again by adding Carter to her trademark application but the company is suing her again.
I know. My point is, at least Blue Ivy has a smidge more originality than LWYMMD. Taylor Swift is basically trying to turn her bullying into intellectual property. The song itself can by copyrighted. That phrase on its own, not so much. If you look at music catalogs historically, there are a number of songs with the same titles by completely different artists, with different lyrics and tunes. Swifty uttering a phrase does not make it original. I nearly gave myself a concussion rolling my eyes while reading this story. I just can’t with her level of stupid anymore. She’s immature, vain, vindictive and untalented.
I associate the phrase “look what you made me do” with abusers.
Many people do.
Agree, so she can have that one. If that’s how she wants to represent herself
I hope Taylor is just going through a phase. I agree that she should be appealing to a wider audience not just teenage girls. I believe that Taylor will move on from this stage in her life and create better music in the future. I don’t understand why she had the need to make an album just to get back at Kim and Kanye. We’ll see.
8 years is a hell of a long phase.
I mean she’s almost 30 years old, so I think this “phase” should be done with like now, but whatevs.
Didn’t Paris Hilton once try to trademark “That’s hot!”? What is wrong with these people? And do other artists do this as well? And most importantly, what is up with her hair? Is it karma or her hairstylists way of saying “look what you made me do”?
Somehow I would like the Idea, that every abuser who uses the Phrase “look what you made me do” will be sued.
(I know it will never happen, but the Image is just too good)
and why would i want to wear a t-shirt that says ‘the old Taylor cannot come to the phone right now?’
Nothing catchy about that one.
I think you are an influencer , if people associated something with you without it being a trade mark. I.e. Beyonce with Lemonade or Formation or even Jay-z with 99 problems.
It isn’t even the old Taylor can’t come to the phone, it’s the punchline….she’s dead. Obviously it’s the snake shedding its skin, but really, such a dark statement to make. If she would take a look around the world, her country or even her own back yard, she’d realize how good she has it.
Perhaps one of the legal minds on CB can enlighten us, but how is it possible to trademark a commonly used term/expression such as “look what you made me do” that’s been in the public domain for years?
Disclaimer: I am not a patent/trademark attorney. Trademarks protect slogans, artwork and other things used for branding or on goods and services. If no one else before Swift has wanted to put that phrase on a t-shirt or coffee mug (and why in God’s name would they want to), she is able to trademark it, even if it is a commonly used phrase.
Maybe it is just the way society is and how social media has made such a huge impact. But the more I read or hear about the personal lives of celebrities like Taylor Swift, Tom Cruise, etc the less likely I want to spend money to see a movie or concert with them performing.
I don’t know her personally(of course) and it is all gossip but she is not coming across as a very nice person. Whatever her motivation for her music or registering trademark phrases it is not really making her look good.
Lol
The most bland bullying makes the most dollars I guess.
She is just another narcissistic celeb wanting to profit off of everyday words. That isn’t an issue, she feels entitled. I feel she jumped the shark…..seriously think she’s having or had some mental breakdown of sorts. She is surrounded by yes people, can take zero criticism, has become “ugly” vengeful. If I were her mom, I’d keep both eyes on her. Maybe she’s trying to change her ladida image, but imo that was always as transparent as saran wrap. Shake it off Taylor. *in so many slasher movies or psycho situations, when the bad guy offs a person/people…he/she says to them afterward: Look what you made me do. Eeks, don’t know if that’s a phrase I’d want associated with my name*
She’ll fall because of her own hubris. Nothing else will get or be allowed to show her otherwise, and as long as she keeps on playing the inflated numbers game with her fans she’ll use that as cover until she inevitably makes that one mistake she can’t come back from. Homegirl should’ve taken a longer break to really reflect on why Snakegate got as big as it instead of this superficial tired redemption plot smh
Well said Lynnie. If anyone has an “air of arrogance” it’s Ms. Swiftie. Can you name another family past or present who uprooted their existence to another state to fulfill their babies dreams. She gets what she wants and let’s face it, Kanye hand fed her notoriety eight years ago. Yes, she was known, no, she wasn’t huge at that point. Even the president scolded Kanye for his actions at the VMA’s….video music awards, we’re not talking the Grammys here. Her mistake was to underestimate fate/karma and in one summer she was given a huge dose of it and now responds as her victimized self. This too shall pass.
@Nancy, I agree that it is crazy to upend your life to promote your child’s supposed career. Still, many stage parents have done it. Beyonce’s Dad left a lucrative career to manage her girl group and spent countless hours rehearsing, promoting, and changing his life to accommodate Beyonce,
Britney Spears mother travelled with her to NYC for a musical during the Christmas holidays when she was a child leaving her husband and the rest of the family behind to do so.
Justin Timberlake’s mom is from Tennessee but moved to Florida for The Mickey Mouse Club.
Famously. And sadly, Michael Jackson’s father was more of a harsh manager than a father figure to Jackson and his siblings.
These are just a few examples off of the top of my head and I know them because they have all been successful. I imagine for every one of these there are hundreds of not thousands who sacrifice their lives to have their children excel in show business or sports and it never comes to fruition.
It’s all really crazy and sad at the same time!
BTW, as far as I’ve read Prince was a hard working prodigy that owes his success to no one but himself, yeah, I love him!
Yup Tulip Garden, behind the rise of every child star is a mom or dad that fought tooth and nail and made it their own career to have that child get famous. I used to tell my mom that I should be an actress (I wasn’t being serious; we lived in NYC) and she would always be like ‘No, if they call you for an audition then I have to drop everything and go to Manhattan and focus on that, and I just can’t do that.” She was absolutely right. Getting famous ain’t easy.
@Nancy
I think lots of parents do that. I have a family friend that moved their four kids to Florida so that their oldest could play baseball year round. Her husband retired from the military earlier than he was planning to, so that they could do it. He’s good, and is a Sophomore in high school with teams already scouting him, so I guess it was a good call.
Now, this family isn’t buying their son a baseball career, so it’s not quite the same.
Yes Nancy and Lynnie! She did jump the shark with this tepid and nasty album, I do think she’s a fragile flower who’s been having a breakdown for the past several years, and her own hubris is the big reason she’s unraveling.
People are dropping truth bombs and getting real today, and I am HERE FOR IT.
Twinkle Twinkle you little Star!!
She is just exhausting. Go away
The song is obviously about her new boyfriend and not about the Kennedy kid. There are several references, and in the “younger than my exes but he behaves like a man” or something like that, she is dragging Calvin and Hiddleston, since they are older than Alwyn
My god, but who the f*ck cares? This is not aimed at you Jessi, it’s just beyond me how that many people are interested in TS’s musically mediocre not-so-blind items on her dating life. And that she never gets tired of beating that horse. This is so lame that I feel second-hand embarrassment. I know, I know, she’s rich and laughing all the way to the bank. I don’t care, she is still lame as f*ck and this is not going to age well.
I agree with the “who cares” but I think those parsing a pop song like it is really all that important just as lame as Swift for baiting that hook so aggressively. I mean I expect songwriter’s to write about their lives, their loves, beliefs, experiences, and feelings. Isn’t that what most write about without pointing giant flashing arrows to it.
I can only hope Swift does let Reputation speak for itself. Stop Answering, “Who Is This About?” or “what Did You Mean?” or “you Have Been Accused Of….xyz” type questions. I would have more respect for her. Baby steps!
I feel the same way Babs. I think she’s got some kind of personality disorder or psychiatric disorder and it’s all finally coming apart in one spectacular mess. SHE isn’t aging well thanks to her exhausting obsession with remembering and avenging every little slight that’s ever happened to her.
Some tumblr blogs noticed she’s been passive aggressively confirming theories by her Tumblr likes, which are in the thousands. Yes, she reads about herself obsessively. Narcissistic.
Narcissistic, or just market research. My own personal take on her pattern of likes is that she’s using them as a way to add weight or meaning to lyrics after the fact. Neither of the new songs is a masterpiece of subtle metaphor or multi-layered meaning, and yet her fans have found many, many ways of looking at every word and phrase. Taylor (or a minion) reads them all, sees which theory gets the most traction from fans, likes a related post, and presto! that is now what the song is about.
She was a “robber” when she cradle robbed with the Kennedy. The new boyfriend is only a year or two younger than her.
It’s about her new bf Joe lol. Not Connor. You have to listen to all of the lyrics, as hard as that might be…
I wish she’d trademark that mess of a hairstyle so I don’t have to risk running into it when I grab my morning coffee. Her hair should never be copied.
I myself am trademarking “bugger off”, “bloody hell” and “ya munted cunt” because I believe my grandfather invented those and passed them down to me and me only.
Please be working at the trademark office.
hahaha you win
Baaahhhaaa wankstain!
As for Swifty, Family Guy did a great episode on her. Also did she go to Tori Spellings boobie dr? Holy tennis ball cleavage. Those knockers are knackered.
That Welcome to New York song plays at the beginning of the Secret Life of Pets and I had no idea that was a Taylor Swift song. That is how much I pay attention, I guess! Why would you even try to trademark that?
I didn’t know that either.
Trademarking common phrases should be banned. Gene Simmons from Kiss tried to trademark the heavy metal “devil fingers” seen at every metal concert everywhere.
I have really bad news, guys. Look What You Made Me Do is quite good for step aerobics classes. Which means it may be good for zumba and other cardio-type fitness classes. I was happily ignoring what I felt was a rather unfortunate message-in-a-song, and then it came on during step aerobics. I thought “what song is this?” while I was stepping away and then I realized, oh crap it has a very suitable beat. That song may have longevity for years to come, sorry to say.
Nah. You can remix any popular song to an aerobics or dance beat. Just Youtube workout music and you’ll see what I mean. Music is dispensable these days.
All I got is the second song is WORSE than the first song she released. People think that’s music?
Okay, I just channeled my mother circa 1983 calling my AC/DC obsession = “devil’s music.” It’s official, I’m old.
Nope. Not old. Neither are catchy, creative, or cool.
They’re both just really really bad –
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I shamelessly admit to finding the new song catchy and fun, but I have Coldplay and Nickelback songs on my iPod, so I think I’ve long surrendered any right to the claim my musical tastes reflect some element of quality. 🙂
Nope, your mom was uptight and you’re just reasonable. Sometimes you gotta call it like you see it.
You trademark it to make sure no one else has. For example had Beyoncé put out a bunch of stuff with Blue Ivy on it she could have gotten sued. It actually happened to Taylor back in the Fearless era. She put Lucky 13 on merchandise and a company called Lucky 13 went after her. From my understanding, this is why a lot of celebs do it. To check. Of course it also prevents scammers from using their product but I’d be trade marking things if I was famous too because 1) I don’t want someone else coming after me and 2) I don’t want someone else to trademark something that I’ve created. Is it over the top? Sure but this is the society we live in. I have no issue with Beyoncé trademarking Blue Ivy Carter. Just like I don’t have an issue with Taylor trademarking phrases from her songs.
She didn’t invent these sayings though. She didn’t create “Welcome to NY”, “1989”, or “Look what you made me do”. If they are lines like the one about her being dead, fine, it’s lame and no one will use it ever unless to make money off of her. You can’t just trademark every word in the English dictionary because it’s in her album. That is her issue.
She is trademarking the sayings in regards to products that directly involve her. If she didn’t trademark the sayings you just mentioned, there’s nothing stopping someone else from trademarking them and then making her pay royalties for using the phrases. A company trademarked Lucky 13. Did they invent Lucky 13? No. Did they come up with that saying? No. But they trademarked it to make sure no one else makes money off of their own brand or to make sure that someone else isn’t selling stuff that may falsely represent their brand. The same thing applies to artists. If you can’t see/understand why artists who are brands in their own right, would do this, you’re never going to. And like I said the most important reason why someone trademarks something is to make sure that it’s not already trademarked so you don’t get sued. See Lucky 13 and Blue Ivy for the examples.
Like Nike did not invent the phrase Just Do It but it’s trademarked so you can’t use them with their products or the way they use it. If you have no issue with large corporations doing it then you should have no issue with artists who have their own brands doing it either. And if you do have an issue with it which I can understand if you do, the problem doesn’t start with the artists/corporations but the people who attempt to make money off of their brands.
Thank you. Someone who actually gets it.
Yes thank you Miles
Now that you put it that way, it at least makes a little bit of sense.
Slow clap for miles for breaking it down
I would imagine a lot of the patenting has to do with merchandising. A celebrity of her caliber has the kind of money that people can go after should she accidentally step on any copyright toes.
This being said, as ridiculous as some of the generic phrases she’s patenting might be, I can absolutely understand going after sellers who are utilizing lyrics that are part of her intellectual material. Those copyrights have to be reinforced fairly aggressively or it can be used as precedent in court against larger infractions.
Exactly. It’s all ridiculous but it needs to be done. It prevents the artist from getting sued (in case it’s already trademarked) and prevents others from selling fake stuff or even worse trademarking the phrases after the fact and then the artist has to pay royalties for their own lyrics lol
+1
As far as I understand the big money for musicians today is in touring and selling merchandise. She / her team is clearly very business-savvy and she has excellent legal advisors (see her recent course case) so the trademarking is simply a business move.
I just scrolled through the comments on YT for her new songs and the commenters are throwing “the old Taylor can’t come to the phone…she’s dead”, “Look what you/she made me do” phrases around all over the comments section. So I would trademark all of it as well.
They say this is about Harry Styles because of the reference to “ghost” in the wording and his song 2 Ghosts which was about Taylor.
I don’t know why everyone is saying this is about the Alwyn guy. To me, it’s clearly about Harry. It seems like it’s a song for someone she’s not currently dating, that’s why she says “I know I’m gonna be with you /So I take my time”. She also references Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, who broke up and got back together many times, just like Harry and Taylor. I’m so embarrassed I know all this sh-t
Yeah I think it’s about Harry too. it’s not about Conner because he just wan’t important enough for her to write a song about.
My clues?
Ghost (Harry wrote a song 2 Ghosts which is about her)
Island Breeze (the last vacation they took together)
Younger Than My Exes (at the time she had dated Joe, Jake, John & Taylor Lautner and Harry is younger than all of them)
Burton to this Taylor (they broke up and got back together multiple times)
Ugh this overgrown child. Please why don’t you submit the entire M-W dictionary and trademark that. When are her 15 minutes over? Don’t child stars flame out?
I get very cranky when anyone attempts to trademark common phrases.
She’s disgusting.
I was fully onboard with her shutting down people who were selling items with her album artwork on it, but copyrighting a common phrase is just annoying.
We were watching College football last weekend, and were surprised to hear ESPN using Look What You Made Me Do as the go-to song before and after commercial breaks.
I sure hope the NFL sticks to Carrie Underwood or something, because I don’t think ANY professional or college sports should be using a song that is a classic abuse phrase (No matter HOW Taylor meant it), given their history.
I’m really surprised this doesn’t seem to be a bigger deal.
You have to wonder if Taylor Swift has got more popular (in terms of sales) the more controversial and despised she becomes. It’s the only thing I can think of that would explain why she’s hellbent on making herself look worse and worse. She used to be this talented songwriter and now she’s coming across so obsessed with her image and not nearly as good musically. It’s sad to see the rise of a mean girl icon in this way.
She sounds like an Orangino Spawn. Ivanka, meet your long lost sister.
Taylor is a huge merchandise mover and these trademarks protect from other’s profiting off her.
FTR – Disney shuts down people on Etsy every single day for using their copyright & trademarked images and phrases. Where is the outrage that a huge corporation like Disney (a corporation far larger than Taylor) is shutting down tiny Etsy stores for attempting to profit off their images? That’s not an issue but when Taylor does the same exact thing it is? Why?
Does Disney shut down people for using common words and phrases? I think not. As I said again what she’s doing is akin to copyrighting the MW dictionary. Unless her granny or grandpa invented that word, no that should be denied (1989, really? So no one can use that year? um ok). That’s not how the law works.
Of course, if she wants to trademark her visage that’s totally different.
Yes! It’s insane that Disney has managed to change U.S. copyright/trademark laws to solely to protect Mickey, which should otherwise have gone into public domain years ago.
None of these phrases are original or uncommonly heard. I can understand if Psy wanted to trademark “Gangnam Style” and his horse dance because it was weird, unique, and one of a kind. “Look What You Made Me Do” has been said by lots of people including myself when someone accidentally bumps into me and I spill a cup of water. It is also said often by bullies and abusers who tell their victims the same phrase as they take their lunch money. Her new songs are a bit catchy, but pretty awful in comparison to her former hits. I agree, she is regressing which is a huge disappointment. I have liked her music and was expecting a lot more from her new album.
Say about that song what you want but for me it became a hymn instantly. Had to leave a narcissist and in a situation like that you are in dire need of everything that gives you strength. There are times in ones live when all that’s left to do is to behave like an asshole to save your own a****. Thank you Taylor! That’s exactly the tune I need right now.