Live entertainment company AEG has filed legal claims against rapper Young Thug, alleging he violated their contractual agreement by selling his music catalog for $16 million without their consent while still owing the company millions in unpaid loans, a news report says.
AllHipHop reported that Jeffery “Young Thug” Williams unlawfully sold over 400 musical compositions that were designated as collateral for a $5.25 million loan that AEG issued to his label, YSL, in 2017.
Under the terms of the original agreement, AEG was granted exclusive global rights to promote Williams’ live performances and required both YSL and Williams to share revenue from concerts involving third-party promoters.
AEG argues that the unauthorized sale of the copyrighted works violates its lending agreement, AllHipHop reported.
The dispute reportedly escalated when Williams allegedly defaulted on the loan payments in 2019, leaving about $5 million unpaid. AEG alleges that both Williams and YSL misrepresented their financial capacity to fulfill the repayment obligations from the outset.
Williams allegedly sold a significant portion of his catalog in 2021, reportedly earning $16 million from the transaction. The report did not disclose the catalog’s buyer. In 2021, Kobalt Music announced that it signed Young Thug to a global publishing deal that includes global synch and creative services for his future songs. At the time, it was understood that the rapper’s current catalog remained at Reservoir, where he signed a deal in 2018.
AEG alleges that Williams misled the new buyers by claiming the works were free of any legal obligations.
In early 2022, the legal proceedings were temporarily halted when Williams was incarcerated on unrelated criminal charges in Georgia. However, following his recent plea deal resulting in 15 years’ probation, AEG has resumed pursuit of its claims.
AEG is now conducting discovery efforts, including serving subpoenas and examining public records to track both the current ownership of the copyrights and the distribution of the sale proceeds, the news outlet reported.
The company reportedly seeks to recover not only the original loan balance but also any earnings associated with the transferred copyrights.
AllHipHop reported that AEG plans to decide within the next six months whether to expand its legal claims to include additional parties or explore other avenues for recovering the collateral tied to Williams’ music catalog.
Music Business Worldwide