U.K. police have announced that Irish rap group Kneecap will not be criminally charged for shouting “Free Palestine” and “‘F— Keir Starmer” during its politically-charged Glastonbury Festival set last month. Avon and Somerset Police said in a Friday (July 18) […]
50 Cent is suing Shaniqua Tompkins, his ex-girlfriend and mother of his child Marquise Jackson, over a series of “tell-all” Instagram videos that supposedly violate a life rights agreement she signed in 2007.
The rapper (Curtis Jackson) initiated the legal action on Thursday (July 17) via his publishing company G-Unit Books. The lawsuit alleges that Tompkins, who dated 50 Cent between the 1990s and mid-2000s, sold her life rights to G-Unit Books in 2007 in exchange for $80,000 and a percentage of future royalties from related projects.
“Jackson purchased these rights to preserve them for use in future biographical or autobiographical projects, but also in part because he was concerned that Tompkins would attempt to monetize their history and his name,” reads the complaint. “His concerns were ultimately proven correct.”
Trending on Billboard
According to the lawsuit, Tompkins’ $80,000 deal granted G-Unit Books the exclusive rights to publicize or exploit her life story. But after Tompkins went viral with an Instagram post commenting on the criminal trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs in June, she allegedly began to blatantly breach the life rights contract by posting a series of “tell-all” videos to the social media platform.
The lawsuit says these videos, which are collectively over two hours long, focus mostly on Tompkins’ relationship with 50 Cent. Topics have included the rapper’s infamous 2000 shooting and his long-running feud with Combs.
“Tompkins’ actions are an attempt to exploit her 15 minutes of fame for commercial gain, even though she is contractually prohibited from doing so,” write lawyers for G-Unit Books.
This conduct has supposedly harmed G-Unit Books by “diminishing the value of the exclusive rights it acquired and undermining its ability to develop and market future works based on those rights,” the lawsuit says.
50 Cent’s publishing company is seeking at least $1 million in damages from Tompkins and a legal injunction forcing her to stop posting these videos, as well as to remove the content she’s already uploaded.
A rep for 50 Cent declined to comment on the lawsuit. Tompkins did not immediately return a request for comment on the allegations Friday (July 18).
Universal Music Group (UMG) is firing back at Salt-N-Pepa’s attempt to win back control of their masters, saying the claims are legally invalid as the hip-hop duo was not actually a party to its 1986 record deal.
The argument comes in UMG’s Thursday (July 17) motion to dismiss the lawsuit brought by Salt-N-Pepa back in May. Cheryl “Salt” James and Sandra “Pepa” Denton claimed the major label is refusing to honor their so-called “termination rights,” a provision of copyright law that allows artists who sign over their master recordings to regain control of that intellectual property 35 years after a song’s release.
UMG’s lawyers argue that Salt-N-Pepa don’t have any termination rights because James and Denton were not the ones who signed away their masters for the 1980s and 1990s albums Hot, Cool & Vicious, A Salt With A Deadly Pepa, Blacks’ Magic, A Blitz of Salt-N-Pepa Hits and Very Necessary.
Trending on Billboard
The music giant says Salt-N-Pepa’s 1986 distribution deal with Next Plateau Records — now a part of UMG — was actually signed by the duo’s producer, Hurby “Luv Bug” Azor.
“There was never an intention to effectuate a copyright transfer from plaintiffs. The only transfer is made by producer as the copyright owner to Next Plateau,” the motion reads. “Because that is not a grant subject to termination by plaintiffs, plaintiff’s declaratory judgment claim as to the validity of their termination of purported grants concerning the sound recordings should be dismissed.”
The motion points out that in a landmark class action lawsuit brought against UMG over termination rights, a federal judge specifically determined that these rights only apply to record deals executed by artists. Salt-N-Pepa’s lawyers worked on the class action, notes UMG, but have “apparently chosen to ignore that decision.”
UMG also says termination rights don’t apply to derivative works, including remixes. Several of the recordings cited in Salt-N-Pepa’s lawsuits are remixes, including versions of the hits “Push It” and “Expression.”“Accordingly, even if plaintiffs had executed grants of copyright rights in the sound recordings that are the subject of the notice, and even assuming that the notice were otherwise valid, UMG’s ownership interest in the derivative ‘remixed’ sound recordings would not be subject to termination,” write UMG’s lawyers.
UMG wants the entire lawsuit tossed out and says it shouldn’t have to begin the discovery process until a judge rules on its motion. Gathering evidence for Salt-N-Pepa would be time-consuming and expensive, says the label, “because the relevant events trace back many decades, including various contractual arrangements dating back almost forty years.”
Reached for comment on the dismissal motion Thursday, a spokesperson for Salt-N-Pepa says, “The Copyright Act was designed to give artists the chance to reclaim ownership of their work, which is precisely what Salt-N-Pepa have been attempting to do, and UMG continues to resist.”
“UMG’s response is just what we expected — an effort to avoid addressing the core issues facing Salt-N-Pepa and so many other artists in these circumstances,” adds the spokesperson. “But we remain confident that the facts and the law are on our side.”
This story was updated on July 17 at 9:58 p.m. ET to include a statement from Salt-N-Pepa’s reps.
The Notorious B.I.G.’s estate has reached a settlement with Target, Nordstrom and other retailers that allegedly sold unauthorized canvas prints of the famed “King of New York” photo snapped just days before the legendary rapper’s death.
A court filing from Wednesday (July 16) says the lawsuit filed by Biggie’s estate in February has been settled entirely. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, as is typical with these types of settlements.
The lawsuit accused Target, Nordstrom, Bed Beth & Beyond and Home Depot of selling infringing prints of the iconic image known as “The King of New York” — a portrait of The Notorious B.I.G. wearing a gold crown in front of a red backdrop, taken only three days before the rapper was killed in a Los Angeles shooting in 1997.
Trending on Billboard
Biggie’s estate claimed the retailers sourced these prints from a company called iCanvas, which allegedly has a history of making unauthorized prints of other artists, including Beyoncé, Prince, Jay-Z, Snoop Dog and LL Cool J.
A lawyer representing the estate, Steven Hart, tells Billboard on Thursday (July 17) that he cannot disclose the terms of the settlement but that “the matter was resolved to our client’s satisfaction.”
“I will also say it is so incredibly important, in this day and age, where everyone’s privacy is under attack and so easily disseminated, to protect our privacy, name, likeness and image and trademarks,” adds Hart. “Companies must do better than to steal the identity of others to turn a profit or for their own selfish a greedy interest. We urge other public figures whether alive or passed to dearly hold on to their good name and use of their images.”
An attorney for the retailers did not return a request for comment.
The resolution comes as The Notorious B.I.G.’s estate is becoming embroiled in another legal battle — this one internal. An executor for the estate of Biggie’s mother, Voletta Wallace, sued the rapper’s widow, Faith Evans, last week for control of the valuable portfolio.
In that lawsuit, Evans is accused of withholding profits from Primary Wave’s landmark purchase of a stake in Biggie’s catalog and other intellectual property rights earlier this year. Wallace’s executor wants to remove Evans from her role as sole manager of Notorious B.I.G. LLC.
Backstreet Boys member Brian Littrell is suing a sheriff’s office in the Florida Panhandle for refusing to take any action against trespassers at his oceanfront home’s private beach.
Littrell filed a court petition last month against the Walton County Sheriff’s Office through his company BLB Beach Hut LLC, which, according to property records, bought a home in Santa Rosa Beach, Fla., for $3.8 million in 2023.
Attorneys for the singer claim that “numerous trespassers have set out to antagonize, bully and harass the Littrell family” by frequently trespassing on the home’s private beach. Littrell has allegedly sought help from the local sheriff, but to no avail.
Trending on Billboard
“Despite BLB’s numerous requests and the execution of the required forms, the sheriff has refused to come to the subject property to enforce the law and remove the trespassers, to charge the trespassers, or to take any action, at all,” says the petition.
Littrell’s lawyers say the sheriff’s department has made clear that they don’t want to help the Backstreet Boys member. They cite body camera footage from May, when a responding officer supposedly told a trespasser on the property that he “doesn’t agree with private beaches” and described Littrell’s police reports as “lunacy.”
The court petition also points to an incident from early June, when another beach trespasser allegedly became aggressive and yanked real estate documentation away from Littrell’s property manager.
“That same day, BLB personnel contacted the sheriff at 1:58 pm, 2:41 pm, and again at 3:02 pm regarding the aggressor on its property,” reads the petition. “However, the sheriff’s department refused to send any officer to the subject property. When BLB personnel contacted the sheriff for the third time to request an officer again, the 911 operator simply hung up on BLB personnel.”
Littrell is now seeking a court order forcing the sheriff’s department to enforce the law and remove trespassers from his property.
In response to Billboard’s inquiry about the court petition on Thursday (July 17), a spokesperson for the Walton County Sheriff’s Office said they don’t comment on pending litigation.
“The Walton County Sheriff’s Office prides itself on handling every situation, call for service or interaction with professionalism using a customer service approach,” added the spokesperson. “This has always been our philosophy and will remain so moving forward.”
Reps for the Backstreet Boys did not immediately return a request for comment.
Stay up to date on exciting projects and upcoming events from the Black Promoters Collective.
©2025 Black Promoters Collective (BPC) All Rights Reserved.
