Groundbreaking hip-hop group Public Enemy is embroiled in a royalties dispute, as hype man and temporal enthusiast Flavor Flav is suing frontman Chuck D, as well as some Public Enemy managers and producers, over what he claims are unpaid royalties.
Flavor Flav, whose real name is William J. Drayton, claims that there was a long-standing agreement between him and Chuck D, whose real name is Carlton Ridenhour, to split merchandise, music and concert profits between the two men according to Rolling Stone.
However, Flav now contends that the band's management firm hasn't been sending him any of that money; his suit also claims he was only paid $7,500 out of a promised $75,000 for appearing on Public Enemy's 2017 album "Nothing is Quick in the Desert." According to Billboard he also contends that he didn't realize the takes he recorded on the album were final takes, and never consented for them to be used.
According to the court documents, which were obtained by TMZ, Flav is "going after producer Gary G-Wiz for making a deal to create action figures" and cashing in on them. Flav claims that he has not received royalties for the action figure bearing his likeness, which was also allegedly made without his blessing.
Disclosure: The author's father represented Flavor Flav in criminal court in Hempstead in the late 1980s. This fact did not color the coverage of the lawsuit in any way.
