LL Cool J has sued the promoters behind the hip-hop music festival Rock the Bells, The Blast reports. The lawsuit alleges that concert promoter Guerilla Union and its founder Chang Weisberg filed to trademark “Rock the Bells” back in 2004. LL appealed to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board to cancel Guerilla Union’s Rock the Bells trademarks last year, but the lawsuit claims that Weisberg continues to attempt to trademark the name for various purposes. LL is seeking an injunction to stop Guerilla Union from using the name.
“Rock the Bells” is a 1985 single from LL Cool J’s debut album Radio. Earlier this year, LL started his own SiriusXM channel called Rock the Bells. The Rock the Bells festival, which got started in 2004 and ran through 2013, has played host to multiple hip-hop legends. In 2013, holograms of Eazy-E and ODB appeared at the festival’s shows. Pitchfork has reached out to LL Cool J and Guerilla Union’s representatives for comment.
