Intro
Former Manager
Lil Wayne Sued By Former Manager For Unpaid Commissions
Date: April 2006
What happened? Wayne’s former manager Melissa Philipian—who was fired in 2005 after booking the rapper an unsatisfactory hotel room—filed a lawsuit claiming she was still owed commissions. In addition, she claimed Wayne contractually owed her company, White Tides Entertainment, 15% of his earnings over the next two years. Philipian pursued damages north of $1 million in total, and ended up getting $375,000 when the case was eventually settled out of court.
Complex says: The key here is location and presentation. It’s a pretty trying task to get Wayne to hand over $1 million while you’re in formal-wear at a courthouse. Replace the formal-wear with a g-string, replace the courthouse with King Of Diamonds, and who knows...it might just appear in your waistband.
Morgan State University
Lil Wayne Sued By Two Students Injured After He Made It Rain At Morgan State University
Date: September 2007
What happened? During his performance at Morgan State University’s homecoming in 2006, Weezy threw a large wad of bills into the crowd that resulted in chaos. He was sued first for $1 million by Tyrique Layne, who said she suffered a serious head injury after being trampled during the event. Afterward, Wayne—along with his record companies and touring company—were sued by Carlisa Dixon for another million when she claimed to be impaled by a metal pole at the show.
Complex says: Okay, so maybe throwing money into a crowd of starving college students isn’t the smartest of ideas.
Unpaid Jewelery Balance
Lil Wayne Sued For Unpaid Jewelery Balance
Date: October 2007
What happened? When Louisiana jeweler Jack Sutton sold Lil Wayne a $138,000 diamond ring and $32,000 diamond chain in 2006, the two agreed that Wayne would pay off the cost in monthly installments. However, Wayne stopped sending money after he made one payment of $24,000. A lawsuit was filed and, in the settlement, Wayne agreed to give back the ring.
Complex says: So in other words, Wayne basically rented a diamond ring and gave it back when he was tired of it?
1999 Bentley Arnage
Lil Wayne Sued For Non-Payment of Restoration Fees On His 1999 Bentley Arnage
Date: December 2007
What happened? In 2007, Wayne agreed to have his 1999 burgundy Bentley Arnage restored by California auto-customizer LeMarck deAndre for $120,000. However, a suit was filed when Wayne made a belated payment of $78,507 and refused further installments. LeMarck and his law firm charged that the rapper owed nearly $91,000 in restoration and storage fees and sued for $123,000, plus $200 per day until the case was settled.
Complex says: We’re guessing Wayne stopped paying the restoration fees because he realized that no one gave a shit about his 1999 Arnage anyway and went and bought himself a Maybach.
I Feel Like Dying
Lil Wayne Sued Over Unlicensed “I Feel Like Dying” Sample
Date: May 2008
What happened? Although Wayne’s “I Feel Like Dying” never appeared on an album, music publishing company Urband & Lazar claimed the song was used to promote the rapper and that he never received permission to sample singer Karma-Ann Swanepoel’s song “Once” (No, it wasn’t a Janis Joplin sample).
The rapper was subsequently ordered by a court magistrate to turn over financial records of Tha Carter III to the music publishing company. Wayne thought the blame instead fell on the song’s producer Jim Jonsin, and he filed a separate suit against Jonsin’s production company in April 2009.
Complex says: Blame who you want, but if you were getting sued for a song you probably didn’t make any money off of, you’d probably feel like dying too.
Playing With Fire
Lil Wayne Sued For Copyright Breach of The Rolling Stones’ “Playing With Fire”
Date: July 2008
What happened? Publishing company Abkco Music Inc. sued Weezy for copyright infringement when they caught wind of his song “Playing With Fire.” Abkco claimed that Wayne sampled a Rolling Stones song of the same name without permission. When a settlement was reached, Weezy was forced to remove the song from Tha Carter III, and all providers were forced to remove digital downloads of the song including ringtones.
Complex says: When you eff with the Rolling Stones’ catalog, you really are playing with fire. Their lawyers obviously don’t play because getting Birdman to pay what he owes is no easy task.
Cancelled NY Shows
Lil Wayne Sued Over Cancelled New York Shows
Date: February 2009
What happened? After three cancellations of Rochester, New York concerts by Wayne, RMF Productions filed a $1.3 million lawsuit against him. Edward Strickland, the General Manager of RMF, claimed to have wired $100,000 in advance of the first show, only to have the show rescheduled three times by Wayne. When Wayne cancelled for the third time in order to accommodate his schedule for the I Am Music Tour, it prompted Strickland and RMF to take the issue to court.
Complex says: We get that keeping your national, sold-out tour on schedule is probably more important than a random appearance in Rochester, NY. However, as fans, we don’t think taking payment and rescheduling three times is a good look.
Mali Boi
Lil Wayne Sued By Producer Mali Boi For Copyright Infringement
Date: April 2009
What happened? Michael Bradford, aka Mali Boi, sued Lil Wayne for copyright infringement over The Carter III track “Mrs. Officer.” According to Bradford, the track began as his own song, titled “Crush.” But then it was reworked by Wayne’s collaborator Deezle and released without any credit or compensation going to Mali Boy.
Complex says: We guess karma caught up to Deezle if he did help Wayne steal Mali Boi’s beat because next thing you know, Deezle was suing Wayne for non-payment.
Cancelled Bahamas Show
Lil Wayne Sued For Cancelled Show In The Bahamas
Date: July 2009
What happened? Weezy was sued by Red City Entertainment for cancelling a show in Nassau, Bahamas after they had paid him an advance of $210,000. According to Red City, on the day of the show they found Wayne “unconscious” in his hotel room.
However, Wayne’s manager, Cortez Bryant, told a different story and alleged the company failed to uphold their end of the contract and didn’t have a soundcrew on the original day of the performance and didn’t provide proper security on the rescheduled date.
Complex says: We’re not sure who to believe in this case, but we can’t front like we didn’t get chills when we heard Weezy was passed out like that. Those promethazine dreams are the kind you don’t wake up from.
Like Father, Like Son
Lil Wayne & Birdman Sued For Copyright Infringement For Songs On Like Father, Like Son
Date: October 2009
What happened? On various tracks on Like Father, Like Son and Birdman’s 5 Star Stunna, Cash Money hired a man named Thomas Marasciullo to do some voiceover work for them (Marasciullo can be heard narrating the skit “Respect”). However, Marasciullo claimed he was never asked permission or paid for his work. To make matters worse, when he started demanding payment, his son (who worked as an engineer for Cash Money) was fired.
Complex says: Well if the father wasn’t getting paid, then the son had to get fired. Cash Money is a family, and that’s mob mentality at its finest.
Jim Jonsin
Lil Wayne Sued By Jim Jonsin For Unpaid Royalties
Date: April 2010
What happened? Weezy’s time in jail at New York’s Rikers Island didn’t stop the lawsuits from rolling in. Jim Jonsin sued the rapper for $500,000 claiming that he had yet to receive royalty payments from the production he did on “Lollipop.” According to Jonsin, the two were able to settle the lawsuit with Wayne paying Jonsin in installments spanning from December of 2010 through the second quarter of 2011.
Complex says: You have to hand it to Wayne for having the balls to do something like this. It’s not like he stiffed a random producer for an album cut. He stiffed the dude who produced one of his biggest songs ever.
Bangladesh
Lil Wayne Sued By Bangladesh For Unpaid Royalties On “A Milli”
Date: May 2010
What happened? In an interview with Vibe, Bangladesh spoke out against both Birdman and Lil Wayne proclaiming “Cash Money don’t pay royalties.” The dispute resulted in Bang filing a $500,000 lawsuit in owed royalties for Wayne’s hit single “A Milli.” In December, Bang said the issue had been cleared up and that everything owed would be paid out.
Complex says: Bangladesh went on to produce Wayne’s “6’7’” and— surprise, surprise!—later complained that he hadn’t been paid for that beat either. Fool me once...
Former Manager #2
Lil Wayne Sued By Former Manager Claiming He Hasn’t Paid Her Since 2005
Date: August 2010
What happened? Back in 2006, when Wayne’s former manager Melissa Philipian sued him for $500,000 and 15% of his $200 million in earnings for the breach of a signed three-year contract, she received a $375,000 settlement. But Wayne claimed his signature was forged.
In August 2010, a Youtube video surfaced suggesting that Wayne lied under oath and did indeed owe Philipian the money she sought in 2006. This prompted Philipian to open a new lawsuit accusing Wayne, Cash Money, and Universal Music Group of fraud, tortuous interference, civil conspiracy, and breach of contract.
Complex says: We’re beginning to think Wayne planned on stiffing Philipian all along because seriously, who really fires someone for booking a wack hotel room?
Deezle
Lil Wayne Sued By Deezle For Unpaid Royalties
Date: March 2010
What happened? Producer Deezle sued Wayne for a whopping $20 million in March 2010 claiming he was owed royalties from his production work on six songs intended for Tha Carter III (“Lollipop,” “Mrs. Officer,” and “Let The Beat Build” as well as cuts that didn’t make the album, “Whip It,” “Prostitute 2,” and “Action”). The album reportedly made around $70 million following it’s release, rendering Deezle’s $20 million claim nearly a third of it’s total earnings.
Complex says: Damn, not only is Wayne wiling to G big name producers like Bangladesh and Jim Jonsin but also lesser known producers like Deezle. He’s an equal opportunity offender!
David Kirkwood
Young Money, Cash Money Sued By David Kirkwood For Unpaid Royalties
Date: June 2011
What happened? This was the first of three lawsuits hurled at the Cash Money this June. Producer David Kirkwood filed a suit claiming he was owed $1.5 million for his work on Tha Carter III’s “Love Me Or Hate Me,” which only made it to the deluxe edition of the album, but included a songwriting credit.
Complex says: We don’t know who David Kirkwood is, but with Carter III producers stepping forward like Tiger Woods’ mistresses, we’re not surprised to see some new names get thrown into the Weezy lawsuit ring.
Play-N-Skillz
Lil Wayne Sued By Play-N-Skillz For Unpaid Royalties
Date: June 2011
What happened? Dallas, TX producers Play-N-Skillz filed a $1 million suit against Dwayne for unpaid royalties claiming they were never paid for producing the T-Pain-featured hit, “Got Money” from Carter III.
Complex says: Seriously, did anyone who produced on C3 ever get paid?
Army Gunz
Lil Wayne & Birdman Sued For Uncleared Samples On “Army Gunz”
Date: June 2011
What happened? Weezy and Baby garnered a third and final lawsuit in June, this time from a track on their 2006 collaboration album, Like Father, Like Son. They were sued by Bridgeport Music for allegedly sampling Funkadelics’ “You and Your Folks, Me and My Folks” without permission.
Complex says: Like father, like son. Either Wayne and Baby don’t care about words like “copyright” or “royalties” or “law” or they’ve just involved in an endless series of misunderstandings. Our guess? The apple doesn’t fall far from the relationship that makes us totally uncomfortable.
BedRock
Lil Wayne & Young Money Sued For Plagiarizing “BedRock”
Date: August 2011
What happened? The latest lawsuit over production credits the YMCMB crew has had to face stemmed from their chart-topping hit, “BedRock.” Done Deal Enterprises, a Waynesborough, GA group, accused Lil Wayne and collaborators of stealing portions of their song of the same name. Done Deal Enterprises is seeking $15 million in damages.
Complex says: $15 million seems like a lot of money but then again the single sold three million copies and We Are Young Money managed to go gold.
