29 February 2012
VVN Music
Most people wouldn't even have noticed the difference, but Madonna's second single from her album MDNA went through a small name change before release. Originally called Girls Gone Wild, it's now Girl Gone Wild.
So, what would make such a small change so important? Well, it depends on who you talk to. Joe Francis, the infamous maker of the Girls Gone Wild series of DVDs featuring college women in rather compromising poses, says it's because he threatened to sue the singer. He claims he sent Madonna a cease and desist letter before the Super Bowl threatening to sue her if she performed the song during her half-time show.
Francis claimed victory in a press release today:
In response to the cease and desist letter issued by Girls Gone Wild attorney David Houston earlier this month, Joe Francis has scored a victory against the likes of Madonna without ever having to set foot in a courtroom. Apparently, Madonna and her record label, Interscope, have seen it Joe's way because it appears that they have agreed to change the song title and lyrics from "Girls Gone Wild" to "GIRL Gone Wild."
According to Billboard, the first track from her new album MDNA, "Give Me All Your Luvin," which she performed at the Super Bowl, plummeted 29 spots on the Hot 100 singles chart. There's been speculation of a strong push to shoot the video and release the newly titled track, "Girl Gone Wild" much earlier than expected. "Clearly her label was trying to avoid legal action surrounding the song," says Francis. "BUT, this is still infringement as far as the law is concerned and we have been in touch with Madonna's representatives in an effort to resolve this issue."
If you listen to the Madonna side of the story, the change has nothing to do with Francis. Her manager, Guy Oseary, has stated that the singer made the change in the title to match up with the way she sings the lyrics in the song. He also told TMZ that Madonna had never heard of Francis nor received any cease-and-desist letter and questioned why a number of other artists have been able to use the Girls Gone Wild title without repercussions.
