LONDON — Given the number of Halloween oriented costumes that involve a sexy young woman, a bodysuit, a short skirt, a fluffy tail, and a set of fuzzy rabbit ears, it’s a little difficult to understand what all the fuss is about – but Playboy has puts its rabbit feet down in what it considers to be a vital trademark issue.After learning that the London-based dance band Spektrum had the audacity to garb its female lead singer in a bow tie, bunny ears, and tail, the executives at the venerable men’s magazine went into full legal mode.
Perhaps the professional bunny protectors didn’t like the YouTube version of the bands single, “Don’t Be Shy.” Whatever their tastes in music, Lola Olafisoye knows for certain that the song’s title was taken to heart by the company’s lawyers, because they contacted StopStart, the band’s label, and started talking tough.
As is so often the case, it was a letter demanding that the band cease and desist that caught everyone’s attention. In this case, the attorneys insist that the dark skinned Olafisoye has no right to wear the familiar tail, tie, and ear combination, so commonly associated with pale skinned blondes, because they all belong to Playboy.
Apparently, if Britney Spears isn’t good enough to pose nude in the publication’s pages, some dance band chanteuse certainly isn’t good enough to wear the cliché costume elements.
According to the UK Metro, David Halliwell, label manager for StopStart isn’t very happy about the turn of events. As he puts it, “To be censored by Playboy after Hefner spent nearly 50 years in court fighting against censorship laws is ludicrous. Saying that, this case is based on money, nor morals, and Hugh Hefner has a lot more of the former than the latter.”
Although the label and the band has declined re-shooting the video, a new version, complete with blurred out bunny, can be viewed.
