Arkells claimed on Wednesday that a man named Ron Kells – or R. Kells – has contacted them about the band’s name.
“MY NAME IS RON KELLS AND WE ALL HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THE NAME OF YOUR BAND AND THE RIGHTS TO IT,” he wrote. “PLEASE GET A HOLD OF ME BEFORE THE HALF TIME SHOW GOES ON. SERIOUSLY.”
Kells is referring to the 2021 Grey Cup halftime show on Dec. 12, at which Arkells will perform in their hometown of Hamilton, Ont.
After not receiving a response from the band, Kells followed-up with another message. “Obviously y’all aren’t taking me seriously,” he wrote. “I’m not happy about my name being used internationally Let alone across Canada. Especially as 1/2 time entertainment for Gray (sic) Cup. GET ahold of me ASAP please.”
Kells ended with a warning. “Y’all have notice THAT YOU DON’T HAVE PERMISSION TO DO THIS UNDER MY NAME,” he wrote, along with his phone number.
Arkells shared screenshots of the messages on Instagram captioned: “Attn @cfl we might have a problem! (We promise that Arkells are named after Arkell St in Hamilton, ON where the band lived.)”
Arkells were formed in 2006 and released their debut album Jackson Square in 2008. (The band originally performed as Charlemagne but was reportedly threatened with legal action.)
It is not clear if Ron Kells is a real person or if the messages are meant to be serious. iHeartRadio.ca has not been able to verfiy the authenticity of the messages.