Rick Ross is being sued for allegedly ripping off his Maybach Music Group marketing strategy and tagline, per TMZ. Ross founded his record label, an imprint of Atlantic, back in 2009 but a rapper named Young Muhammad claims Rozay lifted the name from his 2007 song “Caprice Music.”
Muhammad, formally known as Ishaq R. Muhammad, threatened to sue Ross over the catchphrase back in September 2017, and now he's following through. “YM says he featured Rick on his ‘Caprice Music’ single and Ross could be heard saying the phrase all over the track. Muhammad claims that's where Ross got the idea for ‘Maybach Music,’” TMZ reports, citing legal docs from the suit. Muhammad trademarked Caprice Music, which is also named after a once-famous luxury car, in 2006.
The case is going to a small claims court, and while Muhammad could attempt to sue Ross for millions, he’s asking for a modest bag of $9,999 for the alleged theft of his intellectual property. Roc Nation was roped into the suit for endorsing Maybach Music Group since its inception. Ross has yet to address the allegation or the suit, but even if he does lose, $9,999 is likely a drop in the bucket for Da Boss, who has used MMG to release music from artists like Wale, Meek Mill, French Montana, Teedra Moses, and others.
In the meantime, Ross heads across the globe for an Australian tour this fall and stars in Director X’s debut feature film Superfly, a remake of the 1972 classic, which hits theaters on July 15.
