Does the world have Kenny G to thank for the Starbucks Frappuccino blended drink? 
 
 Maybe. 
 
 The Grammy award-winning musician recently spoke to Bloomberg about how he met Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz and became one of Starbucks’ early investors. 
 
 “My uncle – my dad’s brother – was, I think, the very first guy that gave Howard Schultz money to get Starbucks growing,” Kenny G told Bloomberg. “And my uncle called me and said, ‘I know you’ve been selling some CDs. Meet this guy Howard Schultz. Give him some money for his company Starbucks.’” 
 
 As Kenny G – and the rest of the world – later found out, investing in Starbucks did not disappoint. 
 
 The saxophonist, whose latest album "Brazilian Nights" was released on Tuesday, also named the Frappuccino his Starbucks drink of choice and took partial credit for its addition to the menu. 
 
 “At the beginning, Starbucks didn’t have anything but coffee, and there was another company, Coffee Bean, that had … something called blended,” Kenny G said. “And I would always call Howard and say, ‘Howard, there’s this thing that they do there that’s like a milkshake or whatever.’ And so I think that part of the reason that they did Frappuccinos was people like me giving them that kind of feedback. So I’d like to think that I’m partially responsible for that.” 
 
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 "Kenny has been a dear friend of Starbucks since the beginning of the company and we are very appreciative of everyone, including Kenny, who've been a part of the success of Frappuccino," a Starbucks spokesperson told ABC News. 
 
 While Kenny G may have spoken to Schultz about adding an iced blended drink, two Starbucks partners first began developing the idea in 1993 when they saw an opportunity for the cold beverages in Southern California, the Starbucks spokesperson said. By spring of 1995, the first Frappuccino blended beverages, Coffee and Mocha, were available nationally. 
 
 In addition to the Frappuccino, Kenny G also said he had a role in Starbucks selling music, since his Christmas album, "Miracles," was the first record that Starbucks sold in 1994. 
 
 "That was the experiment to see if they could sell music at the counter, and it worked really well," said Kenny G. 
 
 The moral of the story? Always take Kenny G's advice. ||||| Breaking: America's number one smooth jazz musician Kenny G claims to have invented the Starbucks Frappuccino. According to a new interview on Bloomberg, Kenny G (aka Kenneth Bruce Gorelick) — who also enjoys Blue Moon beer and listening to his own Christmas albums — had a hand in creating the Starbucks Frappuccino. 
 
 According to several sources, Kenny G's uncle was the first investor in Starbucks. Kenny's uncle encouraged him to be among the company's first investors after introducing him to CEO Howard Schultz way back in the early 1990s. Kenny on Bloomberg: 
 
 At the beginning, Starbucks didn't have anything but coffee. And there was another company, Coffee Bean, that had something called "blended" that was a sweet drink, and people were lined up around the block. And I would always call Howard and say, "Howard, there's this thing that they do there that's like a milkshake or whatever." And so I think that part of the reason that they did Frappuccino was people like me giving them that kind of feedback. So I'd like to think that I was partially responsible for that. 
 
 According to Wikipedia, the Frappuccino "was developed, named, trademarked and sold by George Howell's Eastern Massachusetts coffee shop chain, The Coffee Connection. When Starbucks purchased The Coffee Connection in 1994, they also gained the rights to use, make, market, and sell the Frappuccino beverage." ||||| “I’ve been doing this for almost 40 years,” he said. “Taking my green apron off is hard. It is emotional. More emotional than I thought it would be.” 
 
 “I told myself a long time ago that if I was ever going to explore a second act, I couldn’t do it while still at the company,” he added. 
 
 Mr. Schultz’s legacy as an entrepreneur will be defined as much for his vision to create a global coffee chain as for his progressive approach to running the company — or, as he has often said, “to build the company my father never got to work for.” 
 
 Mr. Schultz, who grew up in the Canarsie section of Brooklyn, said watching his father, a World War II veteran who became a truck driver and later a taxi driver, struggle to make enough money to pay for basics had led him to offer complete health benefits for full- and part-time employees and their domestic partners, a first for such a chain. He later provided stock options for part-time workers and offered to cover college tuition for students enrolled in online courses at Arizona State University. 
 
 “Howard proved that a company could be more successful and profitable by elevating humanity,” said Mellody Hobson, president of Ariel Investments and a Starbucks director who will become vice chairwoman when Mr. Schultz steps down. 
 
 Under Mr. Schultz, the company’s financial success has been immense. Shares of Starbucks have risen 21,000 percent since the company’s initial public offering in 1992; an investor who had put in $10,000 then would have more than $2 million today. 
 
 Still, Mr. Schultz’s progressive approach to management has not been without criticism. The company announced two weeks ago that it would let customers and non-customers alike use its restrooms following the incident in Philadelphia, and it was soon criticized by some as putting its store managers in increasingly complex and difficult situations that they may not be properly trained to handle. ||||| If the unicorn food trend isn't already making you throw up a little in your mouth, hold on—things have officially taken a turn for the worse. First, the notion of a rainbow-colored, Instagrammable, frothy drink was co-opted by corporate America in the form of the Unicorn Frappuccino Blended Crème. Now, a coffee shop in—where else?—Williamsburg, Brooklyn filed a lawsuit against Starbucks, claiming that it controls the trademark to the Unicorn Latte name and that Starbucks owes the coffee shop 10 million bucks for infringing said trademark. 
 
 
 
 Presumably, one could buy a real unicorn on the open market for a cool $10 mil. All of which brings us to ask these inevitable questions: Has our entire generation jumped the shark? Has everyone under the age of 35 become a cultural stereotype? Oh, and does anyone have any Lisa Frank memorabilia to sell? 
 
 The owners of The End, the Williamsburg coffee purveyors, claim that their customers now believe The End copied Starbucks, when it's really the other way around. Papers filed in federal court say The End started selling their rainbow-y concoction back in December and filed for a trademark on January 20; that application is still pending. Then—lo and behold—Starbucks began selling a blended drink that looks like a five-year-old's hopes and tears on April 17. The Starbucks drink was available for a limited time only and is no longer being sold. 
 
 The attorneys for The End believe their demands for big bucks are justified. They told MUNCHIES, "Our client created the Unicorn Latte, a successful product that our clients transformed into a social media sensation, developed a famous and valuable trademark, and took the appropriate steps to protect it. Starbucks, with its thousands of coffee shops, launched a competing product with a similar look and name, and marketed it in the same channels where our client's product became famous, severely damaging our client's mark. We brought this lawsuit to protect a local business from having its valuable intellectual property taken by a global corporation." 
 
 Oddly, neither drink has anything to do with coffee. The End's version contains "cold-pressed ginger, lemon juice, dates, cashews, blended with additional healthy, dried ingredients such as maca root, blue-green algae, and vanilla bean." Starbucks' iteration is composed of "milk, artificial sweeteners, color additives, and pinches of fruit juice concentrate." 
 
 The End's co-owner, Bret Caretsky, describes his establishment as a "wellness cafe" and insists that his beverage is no commercially produced Frankendrink. He told MUNCHIES, "We developed the Unicorn Latte as a healthy and delicious product. The Unicorn Latte has been the most popular product we've created to date, so we were shocked and disappointed when Starbucks came out with the Unicorn Frappuccino, which is similar to our product in name and appearance, but has none of its healthy ingredients." 
 
 Will The End's trademark claims stand up in court, given that unicorn foods and drinks are all over the place? Can the Brooklyn coffee shop establish that, as its complaint alleges, its co-owner invented the unicorn latte, the drink became identified with coffee shop, and that Starbucks' drink confuses customers about its "origin and affiliation"? Is The End's claim that "the size of and scope of Starbucks' product launch was designed so that the Unicorn Frappuccino would eclipse the Unicorn Latte in the market" justified—even though Starbucks is the world's largest coffee chain and The End only has one location? 
 
 Stay tuned. The unicorn wars have just begun. 
 
 Editor's note: Since publishing, Starbucks has provided us with the following statement: "We are aware of the claims and believe they are without merit. The Starbucks Unicorn Frappuccino blended beverage was inspired by the fun, spirited and colorful unicorn-themed food and drinks that have been trending in social media. The beverage was offered for a limited time in April and is no longer available in our stores." ||||| Recognized for his entrepreneurship and servant leadership, Howard Schultz built Starbucks Coffee Company into one of the world’s most recognized and respected businesses, a company committed to strengthening communities through human connection and social innovation. 
 
 Howard grew up in public housing and was the first in his family to graduate college. As a young entrepreneur, he set out to build a different kind of company, one that delivers business excellence through a culture of compassion. Under his leadership, Starbucks has delivered approximately 18,000 percent in shareholder returns since its Initial Public Offering in 1992, while pioneering programs like comprehensive healthcare, stock ownership and free college tuition for all eligible employees. Today, Starbucks has 28,000 stores in 77 countries and ranks third on Fortune’s list of “World’s Most Admired Companies.” 
 
 Howard’s groundbreaking initiatives through Starbucks and the Schultz Family Foundation have extended employment and educational opportunities to hundreds of thousands of partners (Starbucks employees) and people outside the company. In 2014, Howard developed the Starbucks College Achievement Plan (SCAP) in alliance with Arizona State University President Michael Crow, enabling partners to pursue their college education tuition-free through ASU online. 
 
 Howard’s Starbucks journey began in 1981 when he walked into the first Starbucks store in Seattle’s Pike Place Market and discovered a local business that was passionate about roasting the highest quality coffee. He moved from his native New York and joined Starbucks in 1982 as director of operations and marketing. At the time, there were only four Starbucks stores. 
 
 One year later, on a business trip to Italy, Howard was captivated by the romance of the Italian coffee bar. He returned to Seattle with a vision of bringing the Italian coffeehouse tradition to the United States, creating a unique place for human connection and a sense of community. After leaving Starbucks for a short time to start his own II Giornale coffeehouses, he purchased Starbucks six stores and roasting facilities in 1987 with the help of local investors, beginning a global expansion that would change how the world consumed coffee. 
 
 Howard served as chairman and chief executive officer from 1987-2000, and again for nearly another decade starting in January 2008 to lead the company’s transformation with a renewed focus on Starbucks coffee heritage, innovation and enhanced customer experience. In April 2017, Howard transitioned from ceo to executive chairman to shift his full-time focus to social impact initiatives and the Starbucks Reserve® brand. 
 
 After four decades with Starbucks, Howard stepped down on June 26, 2018 and became chairman emeritus. His legacy redefined the role and responsibility of a for-profit, public company, proving that a business can exceed expectations by sharing success with its people and the communities it serves. 
 
 Along with his wife, Sheri, Howard is co-founder of the Schultz Family Foundation. He is also the best-selling author of "For Love of Country: What Our Veterans Can Teach Us About Citizenship, Heroism, and Sacrifice" (2014), "Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life without Losing Its Soul" (2011), and "Pour Your Heart Into It" (1997). 
 
 Howard holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Northern Michigan University. Before joining Starbucks, he worked three years in sales and marketing with Xerox Corporation and served as vice president and general manager of Hammarplast U.S.A. He is co-founder of Maveron LLC, a venture capital group.
– There's another reason for you to love Kenny G. Not only does he provide the world with smooth saxophone jazz, he also helped provide the world with the Starbucks Frappuccino, at least according to the musician himself. He was an early Starbucks investor, he explained this week in an interview with Bloomberg, and he noticed that "Starbucks didn’t have anything but coffee" while another coffee chain, Coffee Bean, "had something called 'blended' that was a sweet drink, and people were lined up around the block. I would always call [Starbucks CEO] Howard [Schultz] and say, 'Howard, there’s this thing that they do there that's like a milkshake or whatever.' ... So I'd like to think that I was partially responsible" for the drink. And, of course, now, the Frappuccino is his favorite Starbucks beverage, he says. And, though Eater cites Wikipedia in pointing out that Starbucks may actually have bought the rights to the Frappuccino when the chain bought another chain, the Coffee Connection, in 1994, a Starbucks rep tells ABC News, "Kenny has been a dear friend of Starbucks since the beginning of the company and we are very appreciative of everyone, including Kenny, who've been a part of the success of Frappuccino." (The rep also says two Starbucks partners began working on what would be the Frappuccino in 1993; it launched nationally two years later.) As for how he became a Starbucks investor, Kenny said his uncle—possibly Schultz's first investor, per Kenny—suggested he invest and also try to sell his CDs there. And in 1994, one of his albums became the first CD Starbucks ever sold. "That was the experiment, to see if they could sell music at the counter, and it worked really well." (Here's what a Starbucks does to the neighborhood.)