If someone said, “I loved watching Hell’s Kitchen last night,” many would assume that they were talking about Gordon Ramsay’s cooking competition series.
After all, the reality TV series has aired over 20 seasons since 2005, when the show first debuted. It seems that there are many hopeful chefs willing to put their careers on the line in order to undergo some tough training and have a chance to become the head chef at one of Gordon Ramsay’s signature restaurants.
However, a new Hell’s Kitchen has entered the chat. This new jukebox musical, created by Kristoffer Diaz, is the semi-autobiographical telling of Alicia Key’s upbringing in Manhattan in the 1990s.
Trademarks can be tricky things and there is a lot of misinformation out there about whether or not one can trademark Hell’s Kitchen since it is the name of a neighborhood.
Celebrities have made some pretty crazy trademarks over the years, but fans who do a little digging will see that Gordon Ramsay’s Hell’s Kitchen does have a trademark… for its logo.
The stylistic way that Gordon Ramsay’s Hell’s Kitchen is written with a pitchfork design does, in fact, hold a trademark for it to be used in any number of ways. The filing states that it is allowed to be used on coffee cups, mugs, and even plastic bags for the purpose of storing food for household use. It can be used on clothing, like sweatshirts and T-shirts, and has a wide variety of uses in the food and drink industry.
Since Gordon Ramsay’s Hell’s Kitchen brand is more synonymous with a restaurant venue than a form of entertainment, Alicia Keys was allowed to use the name for her show.
While there is certainly entertainment value in watching Hell’s Kitchen with Gordon Ramsay, a copyright office would note that, legally, the two serve a very different purpose. Gordon Ramsay’s trademark is focused on the food and beverage industry, while Alicia Keys’ musical is geared towards a more musical crowd. Therefore, it is unlikely that one would interfere with the other’s audience.
Fans of Gordon Ramsay’s Hell’s Kitchen might forget that it’s also the name of a neighborhood in New York. Formerly known as Clinton, Hell’s Kitchen is located on the West Side of midtown Manhattan in New York City.
Alicia Keys appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert in June 2024 to talk about her Broadway musical Hell’s Kitchen when it opened at the Shubert Theater.
After Alicia Keys praised the “phenomenal” energy in the room, host Stephen Colbert took a moment to congratulate her on thirteen Tony nominations. “Sounds like thirteen is your lucky number because you started working on the show thirteen years ago,” Colbert pointed out.
The two then joked about the way that she celebrated the success of her musical before Colbert asked her about the “iconic guests” who appeared to support her on her opening night. He pulled out a photo of Oprah and Michelle Obama, joking that their appearance was a “good omen” for her success.
“It was spectacular to be able to celebrate in such sisterhood like that,” Keys said. “This was really special.” She praised Oprah for being an incredible mentor to her and revealed that the first show she was ever on was actually The Oprah Winfrey Show .
During the interview, Stephen Colbert couldn’t help but point out that she grew up in Hell’s Kitchen, which is not far from where his own studio is located in New York City. He reminded her that she must have walked past those theaters a dozen times growing up without ever knowing that she would one day have her own musical being hosted
