Kanye West sure loves his logos and wordmarks. It seems that barely a week goes by without the rapper and businessman filing for a trademark on a new logo design or name, and this week we have not one but two new entries in Ye's ever-expanding empire of trademarks, suggesting that he's definitely planning something.
Last month, Mascotte Holdings, which owns all of West's trademarks, filed a design for a curious circular logo that looked something like a cog, or a seal of some kind... or perhaps the sun. With West involved in several design debacles of late, we immediately wondered who he'd upset this time. But it seems West has already developed the idea further, now specifying a colour for the logo design – and possibly a new brand name too.
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Kanye West's new logo trademark application(Image credit: Mascotte Holdings)
Kanye West's latest trademark application alongside the last, colourless design(Image credit: Mascotte Holdings)
The first of Ye's latest trademark filings is an updated version of a design he filed last month. It shows the same circle inside a circle with jagged edges – or as the description in the filing reads, "a fanciful design of two concentric circle logo with the outer circle represented by a fluted circular line."
The last filing showed the design and black and white and noted that colour was not claimed as a feature of the mark. But the logo now appears in a deep blue colour, and the new filing with the US Patent and Trademark office clarifies that "The color(s) blue is/are claimed as a feature of the mark... The interior of the design is blue."
What is it and what will it be used for? West did release his Jesus is King album on a blue vinyl, but it's not clear that there's any connection to that. The filing mentions use in retail stores and online retail and for practically every type of clothing you could imagine, from G-strings to smocks, ear muffs and infant sleepers. We can safely say the idea is for it to appear on clothing, though it's not clear if that will be as part of West's existing Yeezy brand.
Intriguingly, Mascotte Holdings this week also filed six trademarks for the wordmark GROTESQUE. The application shows the wordmark in a simple, elegant serif font and describes it as intended for use in clothing, fragrances, cosmetics, footwear, jewellery and watches. This has us wondering whether there's a connection and if the mysterious blue circle could be the logomark for an entirely new clothing and fragrances brand from West.
Kanye West's second trademark application this week is for the wordmark GROTESQUE (Image credit: Mascotte Holdings)
It's interesting that he's applied for the trademark for retail stores as well as online retail, suggesting that West might be planning to expand from his Yeezy Supply website to physical locations. Or perhaps the blue circle could even be a shield for his Donda Foam Vehicle.
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We'll just have to wait to see what West has planned for the latest additions to his bank of trademarks – if anything. We wouldn't put the new logos in our pick of the worst logos of 2022, but they are kind of... well, plain. West may just be trying to get in early to be extra safe after his recent disputes.
Joe is a regular freelance journalist and editor at Creative Bloq. He writes news, features and buying guides and keeps track of the best equipment and software for creatives, from video editing programs to monitors and accessories. A veteran news writer and photographer, he now works as a project manager at the London and Buenos Aires-based design, production and branding agency Hermana Creatives. There he manages a team of designers, photographers and video editors who specialise in producing visual content and design assets for the hospitality sector. He also dances Argentine tango.
