Ex-Callalily members “deny” Kean Cipriano’s claims over band name trademark: “Each of us represents the band and its music”

Former members of Filipino band Callalily – now in a group called LILY – have released a statement saying they deny vocalist Kean Cipriano’s claims regarding the license to use the trademarked “Callalily” name.

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In the statement published yesterday (July 4) on LILY’s social media pages, they addressed Cipriano’s statements regarding the band name “Callalily”. Cipriano said in an interview with ABS-CBN last week that he owns the trademark to that band name. “You have to understand also that I came up with the name ‘Callalily’ and it’s under my intellectual property,” he said.

In that interview, Cipriano also claimed that he sent his former bandmates a licensing agreement for the band name, and that they stopped responding after that.

“When they asked for the figures, I put figures and all. After that, they didn’t talk to me anymore. I said, ‘Let’s talk.’ I actually reached out to them a couple of times, to our group, to our former road manager, to the members themselves,” Cipriano claimed.

In their new statement, LILY – the group of Nathan Reyes, Aaron Ricafrente, Lem Belaro and Alden Acosta – started by acknowledging Cipriano’s decision to leave the band due to “lack of output and the negative atmosphere”. “It is unfortunate that he no longer felt happy making music with the rest of us,” they said.

LILY went on to say they “deny his claims regarding the license to use the name ‘Callalily’”.

“The band members have always felt a sense of ownership over the name because of the fact that each of us represents the band and its music,” they wrote. “And with the band running for almost 17 years, the Callalily brand that is known today was built not just by one person but by a collective whole.”

They also stated that while they respect Cipriano’s decision to leave the band, they “will address his claims in the proper forum”.

NME has reached out to Cipriano for comment.

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Last month, Cipriano confirmed his departure from Callalily, later citing his unhappiness in the band and their inactivity during the pandemic as his reasons for “disengaging” from the band. “It’s hard to stay in a place where you’re not happy anymore, where you’re uninspired, and where you don’t feel valued and respected,” he told ABS-CBN.

LILY, on the other hand, are currently in the midst of a nationwide search for a new lead vocalist. In their statement, they also announced the upcoming release of their new collaborative single with Rachel Gabreza called ‘Sinayang’, out on July 7.

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