In line with HipHopDX, veteran New York Metropolis hardcore punk band SICK OF IT ALL has filed a lawsuit towards American hip-hop duo MOBB DEEP and clothes model Supreme, alleging that MOBB DEEP members Havoc and the late Prodigy stole SICK OF IT ALL‘s dragon-shaped emblem.

Within the lawsuit, which was filed on October 11, Bush Child Zamagate, Inc., the legal professionals for the corporate that owns SICK OF IT ALL‘s mental property, say that they filed the declare due to “defendants’ improper and unlawful use of an almost an identical emblem mark to plaintiff’s inherently distinctive, incontestable, and well-known emblem. Defendants’ adoption and use of their knockoff emblem … isn’t just reckless and inexplicable — it’s willful infringement and unfair competitors.”

The lawsuit states: “Plaintiff has used its emblem since at the very least as early as 1987 in reference to musical recording items, stay musical performances, and associated items and providers, together with clothes items comparable to shirts and hats. In June 2023, Supreme, a clothes and skateboarding life-style model, as a part of a collaboration with MOBB DEEP, started utilizing its emblem on clothes items, together with t-shirts and hats. The similarities between the 2 marks, notably when used on clothes, have confused and are complicated the media and shoppers and are inflicting harm to Plaintiff’s senior mark and model.”

In line with the lawsuit, this isn’t the primary time that SICK OF IT ALL has objected to MOBB DEEP‘s use of a emblem considerably an identical to that of the hardcore band. “Twice, most just lately in 2003, Plaintiff beforehand demanded that MOBB DEEP stop use of its infringing emblem, and Mobb Deep and its associates complied,” the grievance reads. “As well as, instantly previous to the establishment of this lawsuit, Plaintiff demanded that Defendants stop use of their infringing emblem and supply an accounting to Plaintiff of gross sales of the infringing items. Defendants refused to adjust to these calls for.”

In a 2011 interview with clothes model Mishka NYC, Prodigy defined that he noticed the brand on the wall of a tattoo parlor when he was a youngster and bought it tattooed on his hand.

“Principally, once I was 14 or 15, there was this tattoo parlor in Elmart off Hemstead turnpike and I had walked in there to get my first tattoo,” he stated. “There was this dragon on the wall and I did not know what it was, I simply thought it seemed ailing, I used to be mad younger and I had at all times wished one thing on my hand. I prolly seen it on a few of these L.A. gang motion pictures like ‘Colours’. I assumed’d be cool, it’d appear like some robust shit. So I advised the dude put that on my hand. When me and Hav began MOBB DEEP, we turned it into the lil clique factor.”

He added: “We wished to show it into the brand for MOBB DEEP, however then we bought a cease-and-desist letter within the mail…. That was just a few random shit! We did not even know, we was simply younger youngsters.”

Bush Child Zamagate, Inc. is requesting compensatory damages and that the defendants be barred from “utilizing the Infringing Mark or every other mark or marks confusingly related thereto, alone or together with different phrases, names, kinds, titles, designs or marks in reference to the availability of any items and providers.”

Prodigy died in June 2017 whereas hospitalized in Las Vegas for issues attributable to sickle cell anemia. The rapper handed away from an unintended choking incident, a clerical assistant on the Clark County company, confirmed to USA As we speak.