Kylie Minogue successfully stopped Kylie Jenner from trademarking “Kylie” in the U.S. five years ago, but the topic came up again during the Australian pop star’s latest stop on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen. Minogue, 54, said the case was “just business” and she didn’t have anything personally against Jenner, 24. The “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” singer has also still never met the Kardashians.
“It was just business obviously,” Minogue told Cohen on Tuesday’s WWHL episode, notes E! News. “When I was named Kylie, I think I had met one person older than me who was called Kylie, so [it was] kind of unusual. I’ve spent a lifetime protecting my brand and building my brand, so it was just something that had to be done. We came to an agreement.” She added that she would “love to meet” Jenner and her mother, Kris Jenner, in the future.
Videos by PopCulture.com
Back in 2014, Jenner filed paperwork to trademark the name “Kylie,” even though Minogue has been known by just her first name for most of her career. In February 2016, KBD, the Australian business representing Minogue’s interests, filed a notice of opposition, pointing out that Minogue has been busy in the entertainment world since 1979. Minogue’s team also registered the website kylie.com in 1996 and it has been operational since 1998 (and it still is). Jenner’s application was rejected in 2017.
The notice of opposition from Minogue’s team became controversial thanks to a line about Jenner. Her representatives said that while Minogue is an “internationally renowned performing artist, humanitarian and breast cancer activist, known worldwide simply as ‘Kylie,’” Jenner was a “secondary reality television personality who appeared on the television series Keeping Up With the Kardashians as a supporting character” to her sisters at the time. Minogue later said she was not responsible for the “supporting character” comment.
“Can you imagine me saying that?!” Minogue told Rolling Stone in 2018. “That was just unfortunate that that is how those lawyers speak. So I genuinely hope that it’s understood: That certainly did not come from me.” It was “upsetting” to her that the comment was attributed to her.
In that same interview, Minogue said she was happy the situation was “wrapped up” before they ever went to court. “That’s all done. And I’m sure I’ll meet them one day,” the “Love at First Sight” singer added. “The weird thing is, in America, when I am there, they would never introduce me just as ‘Kylie’; it’s still ‘Kylie Minogue.’ It took so long for people to get my name in the first place. ‘Kyle?’ ‘No, Kyle-E!’”
