Music Existence Because of Music, We Exist
English group easy life are making a decision that no band should have to. After years of building up their catalogue and fan base, the 5-piece group are being forced to change their well-known name after accusations of name infringed on a trademark by British low-cost airline, EasyJet.
Tonight, the group will drop their new single “Trust Exercises”, which marks the Leicester five-piece’s final release under the easy life name. Saying goodbye to their moniker is no easy decision for the band, yet feel they are left with no other choice. In their official response, they stated, “it seems that justice is only available to those who can afford it. We simply don’t have the funds to access a fair trial in the high court.”
Their new track, the last of “easy life’s,” is produced alongside FINNEAS and previewed with unexpected poignancy on their headline UK tour earlier this year. It is in many ways a full-circle moment for easy life. It is, in fact, one of the band’s oldest and most cherished songs, inspired by surrounding yourself with good people and treating others with respect. Time-sensitive in release but timeless in musicality, “Trust Exercises” closes one chapter for the group whilst cementing its reputation as one of this generation’s most important (and unstoppable) British bands.
In 2018, Easy Life released their debut single “Pockets” which quickly gained momentum online. The song’s unique blend of alternative rock, jazz, funk and hip-hop caught the attention of critics and fans alike. Since, they have received critical acclaim for their unique sound and have played numerous prestigious festivals across the U.K. including Reading & Leeds, Isle of Wight, and Glastonbury. In 2019, the band signed to Island Records and by 2021 they had released their long-awaited debut album. Factually speaking, it was not until 2022 that EasyGroup applied for a trademark application for “EasyLife”.
This week, news broke that Easy Life is being sued by EasyGroup, the parent company of the budget airline EasyJet. EasyGroup operates several business arms designated by the “easy” prefix, including EasyBus, EasyCoffee and EasyGym. In a brief, the company claimed consumers could incorrectly conflate the band Easy Life with the EasyGroup brands. In response, the band have asserted they have likely never harmed EasyGroup’s business with their band name, despite an old tour poster and T-shirt where the band styled their name in the same orange color and font as EasyJet’s branding.
Easy Life have released an official statement, which can be read here, or below.
The band says, “easy jet are suing us for being called easy life. they’re forcing us to change our name or take up a costly legal battle which we could never afford. we’ve worked hard to establish our brand and i’m certain in no way have we ever affected their business.”
Furthermore, the band writes, “Even though we aren’t able to fight this, we now need to go into a period of legal mediation with Easy Group about what happens next. We’re really hoping they might be gracious about this, and we are hopeful for the opportunity to finally put out the song we know you’ve been wanting for years. Still not as we’d imagined, but it’s a song for you guys and we want you to have it.” In addition to the unplanned release of the song, easy life have booked final shows, in which they performed tonight at O2 Academy Leicester.
While it is unclear which name the band will adopt going forward, it is clear that their fanbase will follow along wherever they go. easy life’s latest, and last, single “Trust Exercises” is an apt end of an error for the beloved band. It is available to stream everywhere on Friday, October 13.
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