Morris Day, Minneapolis funk mainstay and Prince associate, shared an Instagram post today claiming that the Prince Estate has prohibited him from using the band name Morris Day and the Time in any capacity. The estate has since issued a denial, saying that it was “surprised and disappointed” in Day’s “not entirely accurate” account.
“Given Prince’s longstanding history with Morris Day and what the Estate thought were amicable discussions, The Prince Estate was surprised and disappointed to see his recent post,” the Prince Estate’s statement reads. “The Estate is open to working proactively with Morris to resolve this matter. However, the information that he shared is not entirely accurate.”
Day’s team have since shared the Prince Estate’s initial letter from December with Billboard. Attorneys for the estate reportedly took issue with Day’s attempt to trademark the name Morris Day and the Time and cited an alleged 1982 agreement that Prince’s company would own the rights to the name. “Accordingly, Mr. Day has no right to use or register ‘The Time’ in any form,” the December letter reads. “That includes use and registration of the trademark ‘Morris Day and the Time.’”
The letter reportedly threatened legal action to block Day’s trademark attempt. Day’s team called the Prince Estate’s characterization of the 1982 agreement inaccurate. “The written agreement between the parties gives our client the exclusive right to continue as Morris Day and the Time and is consistent with Prince’s long-standing consent,” attorney Richard B. Jefferson told Billboard.
Day’s statement today reads:
“I’ve given 40 years of my life building up a name and legacy that Prince and I came up with. A name that while he was alive, he had no problem with me using. I literally put my blood, sweat, and tears into bringing value to that name. In fact, he booked me on several tours, and many jam packed nights at Paisley Park, under the name Morris Day & The Time. Not once ever saying to me that I couldn’t use that name configuration.
“However, now that Prince is no longer with us, suddenly, the people who control his multi million dollar estate want to rewrite history by taking my name away from me, thus impacting how I feed my family. So as of now, per the Prince Estate, [I] can no longer use Morris Day & The Time in any capacity.”
Pitchfork has reached out to Morris Day’s representatives for comment.
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This article was first published on March 3 at 8:19 p.m. Eastern. It was last updated on March 3 at 9:23 p.m. Eastern.
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