July 3rd 2023.
The Essence Festival of Culture's legal team has had a strenuous week, as Spotify is now their latest target. The organizers of the New Orleans-based festival, which celebrates Black music and culture, have accused Spotify of violating the terms of a 2019 agreement which granted the streaming giant the right to utilize some aspects of the festival's branding for an event.
James Williams, who heads the Essence Fest legal team, released a statement citing this as "yet another example of the historic, intentional exploitation of Black culture, Black intellectual property, Black creators, Black businesses, and Black equity." He further emphasized the need to protect and celebrate those companies that collaborate with, and return value to, Black communities, while defending the rights and value against those that choose to exploit them.
The two sides were meant to renegotiate the agreement in 2019 as part of a longer-term partnership, however, Covid-19 caused the cancellation of the festival and, consequently, the agreement was not renewed. Despite this, Spotify decided to bill their House of Are & Be event at Essence Fest in 2022 as a return to the festival's line-up.
Essence Fest also decided to pursue legal action against Baldwin & Co. Coffee and Bookstore, a Black-owned New Orleans-based bookstore. The organizers claimed the bookstore had promoted an event during 2023's Essence Fest celebrating Black authors, as if it were part of the festival. Following considerable backlash on social media, Essence Fest dropped the lawsuit against the bookstore, but still intend to proceed with a suit against the event's organizer, Tamika Newhouse.
Essence Fest is now pursuing legal action against two other companies, asserting they had diluted the Essence Fest brand identity. The organizers also stated on Twitter that artists had been misled into believing they were participating in an official Essence Fest event, despite this not being the case.
This particular case brings to light the obligation of corporations to be ethical and respectful when utilizing elements of culture that do not belong to them. It also serves as a reminder of the risks such moves can bring. Companies like Spotify have achieved their billion-dollar status by being far from ethical, and this case serves as yet another example of this.
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