Kibler Fowler & Cave represents Westside Merchandising in a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court against rap artists Calvin Broadus (p/k/a Snoop Dogg), O’Shea Jackson (p/k/a Ice Cube), Todd Anthony Shaw (p/k/a Too Short), and Tywone Stevens (p/k/a E-40), as well as several of their representatives. The suit alleges fraud, breach of contract, and conversion arising from a failed merchandising partnership connected to the artists’ hip-hop “supergroup,” Mount Westmore.
The complaint alleges that in 2022, Westside Merchandising entered into an exclusive agreement with Mount Westmore to manage the group’s merchandise operations for an anticipated U.S. and European tour. Under the agreement, Westside paid approximately $1.3 million in advances and royalties based on the artists’ commitments to participate in promotional and touring activities. The lawsuit claims the defendants failed to meet those obligations—by not producing agreed-upon promotional materials, not appearing at required events, and not returning the advance payments—costing Westside Merchandising millions in missed opportunities.
The case raises key issues concerning performance obligations in entertainment merchandising contracts. The defendants have sought to limit discovery by arguing that Snoop Dogg and Ice Cube should not be deposed, despite being signatories to the contract at issue, because they are “high-profile individuals who keep busy schedules with firm commitments.” KF&C opposed this effort and prevailed, paving the way for a series of depositions in the case.
KF&C Partner John Fowler was recently quoted in Us Weekly: “Defendants in this case are trying to hide from having their depositions taken because they are scared of answering difficult questions relating to their swindle.” He added, “[t]he defendants took my client’s money, promising to be an upstanding partner focused on touring and merchandising efforts, only to run away with seven figures of funding, and failing to provide anything in return. My clients were sold a bill of goods, and have lost millions of dollars in merchandising opportunities, while the defendants have enriched themselves at my client’s expense.” He continued, “[t]he defendants have no real legal defenses to the case, and their strategy has been simply to delay the inevitable. Defendant Too Short has publicly stated that they were just ‘too rich and busy’ to focus on Mount Westmore, which is obviously not a legitimate defense in a court of law. We look forward to trying this case.”
The KF&C team representing Westside Merchandising includes Partner John Fowler, Counsel Tracy Rane, Counsel Dominique Caamano, Senior Associate Zien Halwani, and Paralegal Praveeta Garcia.
Coverage of the lawsuit has appeared in Us Weekly and Digital Music News.
To read the Us Weekly articles, please click here and here.
To read the Digital Music News coverage, please click here.