When Mariah Carey announced the launch of her cream liqueur brand Black Irish on Instagram, it would be fair to say that it took people by surprise. However, the singer is already facing issues, after an ongoing trademark battle means the brand cannot currently be sold in the EU.
According to a report in The Currency, Mariah Carey faces a trademark battle over the name of her Black Irish drinks brand, as a group of Irish drinks entrepreneurs, through their group Darker Still Spirits Co Ltd, are already bottling an alcoholic drink of the same name in Europe.
This iteration of Black Irish comprises a blend of Irish Whiskey with stout, chocolate malt, and barely, per The Currency.
Carey announced the launch of her cream liqueur on Instagram, writing “Introducing Black Irish. Two years in the making. Truly a cause for celebration!!!”
However, European Union Intellectual Property Office filings reveal that the singer’s legal team has been battling over the trademark of the Black Irish name in EU for a year already.
Carey’s choice of the name Black Irish for her drinks brand is thought to be a nod to her mixed heritage, a subject she has discussed with some candour in the past.
Speaking about her heritage in a 2009 interview, Carey stated:
“It’s, like, my mother’s white – she’s so Irish, she loves Ireland, she’s like, yay, Ireland! Waving the flag and singing When Irish Eyes Are Smiling. And that’s great. I appreciate that and respect it.
“But there’s a whole other side of me that makes me who I am and makes people uncomfortable. My father identified as a black man. No one asked him because he was clearly black. But people always ask me. If we were together, people would look at us in a really strange way. It sucked. As a little girl, I had blond hair, and they’d look at me, look at him, and be disgusted.”
It is reported that representatives for Carey are attempting to take over the Black Irish trademark so that the brand can be sold in Europe. It is believed that Carey’s Black Irish is made in Ireland.
H/T: The Currency
