The rock umlaut has been made famous by Hüsker Dü and Motörhead and now rap kingpin Jaÿ-Z has reverted to his early use of the Germanic diacritic on his name. Oh, and he's also gone back to using that tricky hyphen.
Giving headaches to sub editors everywhere, Mr Z has begun re-using the umlaut and the hyphen on his Tidal streaming website and on his Facebook page.
His wife Beyoncé already has a very cute acute on her name so perhaps it's for symmetry but music site The Fader has suggested that the return of the umlaut and hyphen is down to the fact that Jay, sorry, Jaÿ is making a nod to his early career as he heads out on a tour of his b-sides.
The umlaut is a beloved symbol of Gothic excess in metal music and is often used as a distinguishing mark by discerning bands looking for a touch of the Teutonic.
As David St. Hubbins, who also flirted with the umlaut, remarks in rock mockumentary Spinal Tap, "It's like a pair of eyes. You're looking at the umlaut, and it's looking at you."
