S. Samuel
G-Unit leader 50 Cent has reportedly filed a lawsuit against former business associates responsible for his "Sleek By 50" headphones over $285,000 he lent the company over two years ago.
Details of the lawsuit hit the Internet Thursday (August 30) evening.
Gangsta rapper 50 Cent has a beef with a Bradenton company. The hip-hop heavyweight has sued Sleek Audio LLC for a $285,000 promissory note he lent the company in April 2010, which remains unpaid, court records show. The partnership originally resulted in the “Sleek by 50” wireless headphones that were announced at the 2011 CES convention in Las Vegas and written about in Rolling Stone Magazine and other national publications. Sleek Audio issued a press release last May terminating its licensing agreement with the 37-year-old rapper, whose real name is Curtis Jackson. In addition to having his advance money returned, Jackson requested $61,429 in back interest, an additional 15 percent for any debt that remains unpaid going forward, and for Sleek Audio to pay legal fees tied to the issue. (Miami Herald)
In response to the suit, Sleek claimed all bets were off when 50 teamed up with his current headphones line, SMS Audio.
Sleek Audio argues the loan became void when Jackson took their idea to a competitor. The company also claims Jackson purposely omitted and misstated information during their negotiations with intent of fraud, according to the lawsuit. “Sleek would have never borrowed money from Jackson or allowed him to invest in its company had it known that Jackson would ultimately use this tactic (of misusing the money) to steal its design, technology and headphones,” the company said in an un-sworn court statement. (Miami Herald)
Reports of 50 and Sleek’s decision to part ways landed online last year.
In actuality, it was G-Unit that terminated a Brand Licensing Agreement that it had entered into with Sleek, which termination automatically triggered the termination of the earlier announced tri-party agreement. However, not long after the termination of the tri-party agreement, TV Goods and 50 Cent, via his affiliate company, SMS Audio, LLC, entered into a Term Sheet for the two parties to continue joint efforts to produce and distribute a direct response television infomercial to globally market a wireless over-the-ear headphone product offered or sold by SMS that is endorsed by and/or and bears the name of “50 Cent.” Sleek is not a party to that Term Sheet. (Yahoo News)
In January 2011, the G-Unit leader unveiled his Sleek By 50 headphones.
Ludacris and 50 Cent, two rappers, actors and entrepreneurs, unveiled their own respective lines of headphones at CES this year. Ludacris showed off a 5-model line branded Soul by Ludacris, and produced by a company called Signeo. And 50 Cent unveiled his own headphones, called Sleek by 50 Cent, which will be made by H&H Imports, a company that last year signed Hulk Hogan on as the sponsor of a line of home cleaning products called PumMax. (Los Angeles Times)
Check out 50 Cent’s SMS Audio headphones below:
