Lady A name dispute between former Lady Antebellum band & Anita White settled out of court

Lady A (aka veteran soul and blues singer Anita White) and Lady A (the country band formerly known as Lady Antebellum) have settled their dispute over rights to the name out of court. Billboard reports that on Monday, the country trio and White asked a federal judge dismiss their individual lawsuits permanently, but the terms of the agreement — like who can use the name and whether any money was paid — has not been made public.

If you’re fuzzy on what all this is about, Lady Antebellum announced in 2020, during the height of the Black Lives Matter protests, that they were changing their name to Lady A, claiming they didn’t realize when they formed that the term “Antebellum” has ties to slavery and the Confederacy. Problem was, Anita White, a Black artist, had been performing under the name for decades. The country band then sued White, saying they had filed for legal rights to the name, and White then countersued in September of 2020.

Neither artist has publicly commented on the settlement but White, whose Instagram profile lists her as LadyA, did post a picture with this quote: “If you don’t like being a doormat then get off the floor” and the hashtag #TheTruthIsLoud.