A legal dispute has begun as Taylor Swift’s latest album is being targeted by Maren Wade, with the latter accusing the pop star of ignoring her established brand in the entertainment industry.
Maren Wade, an entertainer from Las Vegas, filed documents on Monday, Mar. 30, accusing the Styles hitmaker and UMG of false designation, trademark infringement, and unfair competition. According to her representative Jaymie Parkinnen:
“A solo performer who spent twelve years building a brand shouldn’t have to watch it disappear because someone bigger came along.”
In the documents filed with the federal court in California, Maren Wade is also asking for unspecified damages and for the court to prohibit Taylor Swift from using the name of her album, The Life of a Showgirl. The complaint states:
“They did not do so quietly. Within weeks, the designation was affixed to consumer goods, stamped onto labels, tags, and packaging, and deployed as a source identifier across retail channels—all directed at the same audience Plaintiff had spent years cultivating.”
Maren Wade claims fans think she copied Taylor Swift
Maren Wade was a participant in America’s Got Talent in 2014. Following this, she began writing as a columnist for the publication Las Vegas Weekly, under the title “Confessions of a Showgirl.”
The brand also branched out into the world of podcasting and live stage shows with jazz and pop music, as well as theater.
But then, in early October 2025, the pop star released her 12th studio album, The Life of a Showgirl, which consisted of 12 tracks produced by her long-time producers Max Martin and Shellback.
However, the US Patent and Trademark Office did not approve the title of Taylor Swift’s album when she applied to trademark it, as mentioned in the statement, as it is confusingly similar to the brand name of Wade.
The complaint emphasized that Swift also used the key phrase, “of a Showgirl,” related to musical and theatrical performances, which is similar to how Wade utilized it.
Because of this similarity, the statement argues that it could lead to consumers thinking that there is a connection between the two.
Wade also claimed that Swift ignored her trademark, and that the trademark has been ruined because consumers believe that she is the one who copied the pop star.
As of writing, Taylor Swift has yet to release a statement on the matter.
Swift released The Life of a Showgirl on Oct. 3, 2025. It includes songs such as Elizabeth Taylor, Opalite, Eldest Daughter, and many more.
The album, which is the pop star’s latest work, is inspired by her Eras tour, which concluded last year.
“This album is about what was going on behind the scenes in my inner life during [the Eras] tour, which was so exuberant and electric and vibrant. It just comes from the most infectiously joyful, wild, dramatic place I was in in my life, and so that effervescence has come through on this record.”
Edited by Gladys Altamarino