The lawsuit claims that Taylor Swift’s “The Life of a Showgirl” stole the spotlight from the real life.
Maren Wade says in a trademark infringement lawsuit filed Monday in California federal court that the shiny logo for Swift’s 2025 album is too close to the aesthetic of her “Confessions of a Showgirl.” That was the name of a column he wrote on life in Sin City behind the Las Vegas Weekly starting in 2014, which he changed into a game that he took on a national tour.
“Both have the same structure, the same key phrase, and the same business concept,” the lawsuit says. “Both are used in integrated markets and are aimed at the same customers.”
Wade is described as a “singer, songwriter, comedian and writer” in the lawsuit filed under her legal name, Maren Flagg, and her “Showgirl” moniker which includes acting, writing and digital media.
“Showgirl Life,” the singer’s 12th studio album, released in October, sold 4 million copies in its first week. Its cover shows her in a Las Vegas cabaret outfit, submerged in her favorite colors of orange and mint green. On Tuesday, the morning after the lawsuit was filed, Swift released the newest video for the album’s single “Elizabeth Taylor”, which features old footage of the Hollywood luminary who died in 2011.
Wade seemed to approve of Swift’s use of the showgirl image at first, sharing Instagram posts that used Swift’s music, album-related hashtags, and mint green color scheme. But Wade’s social media presence has been quiet in recent months.
They are also named as defendants in the lawsuit by Swift’s trademark management company, her record label and its sales arm.
The lawsuit says that the album, its marketing and the products around it have caused “the latest book confusion: the presence of a large number of commercial users extinguishes the brand of the high user, until consumers begin to think that the original is the pretense.
A rep for Swift declined to comment on the lawsuit.
Wade and his attorney say the existence of the “Confessions of Showgirl” trademark would have escaped the notice of Swift’s team.
The lawsuit claims that the US Patent and Trademark Office refused to grant a trademark registration to “Life of Showgirl” due to potential confusion with the existing trademark.
“The defendants were therefore warned that the name they chose might be confused with a trademark that no longer belongs to another person,” the lawsuit says. However, they continued to use it.
A letter issued by the office in early March said the application was suspended due to possible confusion with another pending trademark filed earlier, for “Showgirl,” by a third party and related to perfumes. It also cited an “Opportunity to Deny Confusion” based on the existing “Confessions” brand.
The lawsuit seeks an injunction permanently barring Swift and her companies from using the “Life of a Showgirl” name and images, and monetary damages to be determined in the lawsuit, including profits generated from the use of the name.
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