Did Scarlett Johansson's new band steal its name? That's what an L.A. based pop-rock group called The Singles are now claiming. The duo, fronted by Vince Frederick, with Nicky Veltman on drums, have hired legal counsel to send a cease and desist to the representatives of Johansson's supergroup, The Singles (which includes Holly Miranda, Kendra Morris, Julia Haltigan and Este Haim). 

Originally from Detroit, the L.A.-based The Singles are said to have a discography that “spans nearly two decades.” Frederick says the band has been using the name since 1999, but in 2012, the duo officially reformed in L.A. to release their first LP.

“Our band, The Singles, has an account on nearly all social media sites and our music is available in record shops, on iTunes, SoundCloud, and other websites. Just a simple search on Google would have revealed that ‘The Singles’ was already a band name being used by another pop/rock band — our band.” 

He's got a point; a Google search for the “The Singles” brings up Frederick and Veltman's website, www.thesingles.us, as the first result. 

Since surprising everyone by dropping the single “Candy” on February 20, Johansson's group (said to be inspired by '80s new wave and Grimes) have been the most talked-about thing in music. “The idea was to write super-pop dance music written and performed by girls,” said Johansson. The buzz also surprised Frederick, especially when it was announced Johansson's group would be called The Singles. 

“I woke up one morning and learned from the news that our band name was literally just taken by someone else as their own. It’s hard to believe that any musician would do something like that to another band. The Singles has been my life for the past 16 years. We have worked so incredibly hard to make it a success.”  

The Singles’ legal counsel now demands that Johansson's all-girl supergroup stops using the name, or legal action will be considered. Here is a video by the L.A.-based duo, The Singles, which sounds like a dirty garage take on Weezeresque guitar pop; a far cry from Johansson's electro-pop ditty “Candy,” which sounds like Robyn over '80s new wave and whatever Charli XCX is going for these days. 

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