Prince’s estate has fired back at claims that it’s trying to steal the identity of Purple Rain co-star Apollonia, calling the singer’s lawsuit “frivolous” and saying it never tried to stop her from using the stage name.  

A Thursday (Aug. 21) post by the official Prince Instagram account is the estate’s first public comment since Apollonia (Patty Kotero) brought a federal lawsuit earlier this week. Apollonia, who’s best known for playing a character of the same name in Prince’s 1984 film Purple Rain, alleges the estate is unlawfully trying stop her from using the moniker via trademark cancellation proceedings.

Prince’s estate writes in the Instagram post that contrary to Apollonia’s allegations, it “never instructed her to cease using her adopted professional name.” The estate says it merely wants to “preserve Prince’s assets and legacy,” since the pop icon came up with the name “Apollonia” for the Purple Rain movie.

“Ms. Kotero’s unwarranted lawsuit comes at the tail end of years-long disputes before the Trademark Trial & Appeal Board concerning trademark registrations, in which rulings are imminent and with respect to which we have sought a settlement numerous times despite her highly unreasonable demands,” writes Prince’s estate. “Unsurprisingly, her suit fails to acknowledge the cancellation of her ‘Apollonia’ registration by the United States Patent & Trademark Office.”

“We look forward to the rulings in the pending trademark proceedings and a dismissal of Ms. Kotero’s recent federal action,” adds the estate.

Apollonia’s lawyers did not return a request for comment on the estate’s Instagram post on Friday (Aug. 22).

The Instagram statement echoes arguments that Prince’s estate has previously made to regulators at the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB). In legal filings submitted for those proceedings, the estate says it’s fine with Apollonia using this moniker as a stage name but that the trademark itself belongs to Prince’s heirs.

The estate points out in TTAB filings that the “Apollonia” trademark is primarily tied to the girl group Apollonia 6 featured in Purple Rain, whose song from the movie, “Sex Shooter,” became a Billboard Hot 100 hit and spent six weeks on the chart.

“’Apollonia 6’ remains part of American culture through the continued, uninterrupted exploitation of the film Purple Rain and public performances of the Apollonia 6 sound recordings and videos,” the estate says in a TTAB filing from this past May. “The goodwill developed by [Prince] endures, and the ‘Apollonia 6’ mark continues to be recognized as a source identifier for the man who created and produced the group, Prince.”