After changing their name from Lady Antebellum to Lady A, the band is being criticized for their “privilege” by a blues singer who has been performing under the name for decades.
Lady A claimed she’s been producing music under the name for the past 20 years, according to a report published Friday by Rolling Stone.
Lady Antebellum is now “Lady A” — but so is a black blues singer who’s performed music under the name for 20 years. “For them to not even reach out is pure privilege,” says the woman with the original moniker https://t.co/yl0FCVVE0B pic.twitter.com/67tEmlQMqO
— Rolling Stone (@RollingStone) June 12, 2020
“This is my life,” Lady A told the outlet. Her real name is Anita White and she lives in Seattle, WA. “Lady A is my brand, I’ve used it for over 20 years, and I’m proud of what I’ve done. This is too much right now. They’re using the name because of a Black Lives Matter incident that, for them, is just a moment in time. If it mattered, it would have mattered to them before. It shouldn’t have taken George Floyd to die for them to realize that their name had a slave reference to it.” (RELATED: Country Band Lady Antebellum Changes Name Following George Floyd’s Death)
“It’s an opportunity for them to pretend they’re not racist or pretend this means something to them,” she added. “If it did, they would’ve done some research. And I’m not happy about that. You found me on Spotify easily — why couldn’t they?”
Dear fans… pic.twitter.com/7JlcH2NMl6
— Lady A (@ladya) June 11, 2020
Lady Antebellum, now going by Lady A, announced the name change on social media Thursday. The band decided to change the name, which has ties to the pre-war American South, amid the increased conversation regarding racism after the death of George Floyd.
White claimed the band didn’t reach out to her prior to changing their name, but added that she doesn’t plan on changing hers.
“I don’t know if [the new Lady A] are going to give me a cease-and-desist. I don’t know how they’d react. But I’m not about to stop using my name,” White said. “For them to not even reach out is pure privilege. I’m not going to lay down and let this happen to me. But now the burden of proof is on me to prove that my name is in fact mine, and I don’t even know how much I’ll have to spend to keep it.”