The patterns underwriting our existence are unknowable. We do not ask to be born, have no control over the time or place of our arrival, and our waking moments are shaped by the echoes of those who passed long before us. While we can look back and pretend to divine a grand scheme, we can only stumble blindly into the future. Predicting what’s next in our random universe is a pitiful folly: it lies beyond the reach of men or gods.
There’s one exception: we all knew Kylie Jenner would trademark the phrase “Rise and Shine” the moment a two-second clip of her singing that refrain went viral on social media. That shit was obvious.
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TMZ reports the make-up mogul has filed a real-deal trademark application for the phrase, covering its usage on cosmetics, clothing, swimwear, and a number of accessories.
A quick perusal of the United States Patent and Trademark Office registry reveals that to be the case, with Kylie Jenner, Inc. standing as the proud trademark owner from October 17 – just two days after the footage of her serenading her child Stormi Jenner made the rounds on Twitter.
Jenner has already capitalised on the success of that clip. A jaunt over to her personal webstore reveals two hoodies brandishing “Rise and Shine” iconography have sold out. Expect more to come.
The move comes after a similar trademark spree by Kim Kardashian over the name of her new child, Psalm West. While the world is yet to see merch bearing that bub’s name, such trademark protection would protect knock-off merchants from attempting to make some dosh over bootleg merch.
As for ethical arguments over whether Jenner can trademark such a common phrase? Well, apparently she can. If there’s one thing even more opaque than the patterns of our existence, it’s American corporate law.
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