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Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Back issues
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Producer Says Lil Wayne Owes Him $500K

(CN) - A record producer claims jailed rapper Lil Wayne's record company owes him $500,000 in royalties for the song "Lollypop," which won the 2009 Grammy for Best Rap Song of the Year.

On behalf of himself and his company, Rebel Rock Productions, Jim Jonsin, whose real name is James Scheffer, sued Young Money Entertainment in Manhattan Federal Court.

Scheffer says "Lollypop" has garnered more than 4 million downloads and more than $4 million in ringtone sales.

The Lil Wayne album on which it appeared, "Tha Carter III," earned the rapper another Grammy for Rap Record of the Year and sold more than 3.2 million copies, according to the complaint.

Scheffer says the rapper promised semi-annual accounting statements, but skipped the statements due in December 2008 and June 2009. When it did provide them, the statements "grossly underreported the monies due plaintiff and were not accompanied by any payment," Scheffer says.

Wayne, whose real name is Dwayne Carter, began serving a 1-year prison term at Rikers Island in March on felony weapons charges.

Scheffer, a hip-hop fixture, has produced songs for Beyonce, T.I. and Jennifer Lopez, among others.

The 22-page Producer Agreement is attached to the 5-page complaint.

Scheffer is represented by Brian Caplan with Caplan & Ross.

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