SEATTLE — Seattle singer and activist Anita White, better known as Lady A, is calling out the country group Lady A (formerly Lady Antebellum) for taking her name.
White has spent years performing blues as Lady A, a name which she traces all the way back to performing karaoke in 1987.
"My friend from Florida would always call me Miss A, and I said 'I'm married!' Then she said 'I'm gonna call you Lady A' and it kind of stuck," White told KING 5 in a virtual interview.
Now, the blues and gospel singer has been in negotiations with a chart-topping country group for taking the name she's performed under for decades.
On June 11, the country band Lady A said it was dropping the name Antebellum from its name because of its ties to slavery after reflecting on the Black Lives Matter movement and in an effort to be more inclusive.
The country band filed a lawsuit in federal court on seeking a ruling that their use of the trademark “Lady A" does not infringe on White's use of the same name. The band is not seeking monetary damages.
"I should not have to share the name," White told KING 5.
White, who is Black, told Rolling Stone magazine in an article that she felt like she was being erased. She also told KING 5 that the band never reached out to her before changing their name.
"If you're going to be an ally, then you need to be prepared to take action and put your words into action, and by changing your name from Lady Antebellum to Lady A in the name of Black Lives Matter... I didn't say that. They did. I didn't bring race into it. They did. So if you're going to change your name, change your name! Lady A is short fo Antebellum, so where's the work that you put in as an ally? I feel like they should be held accountable," White said.
Band members said that in recent weeks, their eyes have been opened to “blindspots we didn't even know existed" and "the injustices, inequality and biases Black women and men have always faced."
White said she doesn't understand how the band can issue such an apology while taking a Black artist's name.
"This is not about me. This is about Black and indigenous people of this land, of people of color who have always had things taken from us. Our language, our culture, our music, our names. Sometimes all you have is your name."
White had private meetings with Lady A's attorneys, management and met with them on a Zoom call. That was all kept under wraps until the country group publicized the meeting in what White called an attempt to make her look bad.
The comments under the Tweet are mostly in favor of Seattle's Lady A, with one person writing, "Suing to take a Black woman’s name is white privilege run amok. I thought your whole intent was to do *better,* not worse. Drop the suit, humbly apologize, and find a new name."
One user wrote, "For a group that prides itself on harmonies this is incredibly tone-deaf" while another user posted "You are still keeping "Lady A", the name that you stole from a Black artist? That seems more Antebellum than your old name! Hope you gave her some money."
White told Rolling Stone that while the band told her they’d ensure she doesn’t get buried behind the group, she thinks the damage had already been done. She claimed it was harder to verify her name to upload her new single “The Truth Is Loud,” a few weeks ago, and that it’s more difficult for fans and new listeners to find her on streaming services like Spotify, according to her article in Rolling Stone.
"This fight is not about me. Yes, I want my name and I want the identity, but I'm responsible to my community," she told KING 5.
According to the lawsuit, the band applied for trademarks for the name “Lady A” for entertainment services and for use on clothing back in 2010 and no oppositions were filed by any person or entity.
“When we learned that Ms. White had also been performing under the name Lady A, we had heartfelt discussions with her about how we can all come together and make something special and beautiful out of this moment,” said the group in a statement. “We never even entertained the idea that she shouldn’t also be able to use the name Lady A, and never will — today’s action doesn’t change that.”
White said in negotiations with the band over the use of the name, she requested $10 million, half of which she would use to rebrand herself and the other half she would donate to charities of her choice, including those associated with Black Lives Matter.