Troubled NFL star and aspiring rapper Antonio Brown sued for trying to rip off music promoter for $500K
BOWARD, FLORIDA: NFL player and aspiring rapper Antonio Brown is being sued after he allegedly tried to rip off a Florida music promoter for more than $500,000. The former Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver is also being accused of using rap legend Lil Wayne’s name in a failed bid to scam $100,000, a bombshell lawsuit claims.
Brown is being sued for breach of contract and defamation over an “exclusive artist agreement” he signed in July with Tampa Bay-based Secure the Bag Entertainment, the lawsuit filed on Wednesday, October 5, Sarasota County Circuit Court states. It includes accusations of Brown trying to beat the company, also known as STB, out of $178,000 by submitting “fraudulent” expenses for reimbursement, hawking STB owner Ryan Kane a fake high-end watch for $160,000, and using a series of lewd, racist and sexist slurs and making threatening remarks towards STB executive and others.
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The suit was filed mere days after the troubled NFL player texted a The New York Post reporter, “Do what u got to do p—y u white boys dead already,” when asked about a shocking video of him exposing his private parts to guests in a pool of Armani Hotel Dubai.
Robert Kane called Brown nothing but a "liar and a thief.” “Now I know how the Raiders felt when they paid him [at least $1 million], and he never played a single game for them,” Kane said, referring to the team that cut Brown over a series of off-the-field incidents before the 2019 season.
Kane said he started his company in early 2022 and recruited Brown. In the course of their brief friendship, Kane gave Brown a $150,000 advance to sign with STB, adding that both sides were excited to shoot a video to promote a song titled 'Cracked'.
Kane further explained that Brown insisted Lil Wayne wanted to be paid “$250,000 in cash” and receive the money through Brown only. Kane wrote the $250,000 check but soon after had reservations and told him he was halting payment despite being “threatened” by Brown that “the check better be good,” the lawsuit states.
Kane confirmed with Lil Wayne reps that they never asked Brown to get their client’s money and that Lil Wayne was expecting to be paid only $150,000. Brown allegedly tried to defraud STB of the remaining $100,000 and wanted to pocket it for himself, the suit read. The friction between both sides started around July when Brown returned to Florida after performing at the Rolling Loud hip-hop festival in Los Angeles.
STB had agreed to pay for Brown to fly on a private jet and other expenses but Brown handed STB a jacked-up invoice demanding reimbursement for more than $178,000 in expenses, which the suit states was “grossly overstated or completely fabricated."
Kane alleges the unauthorized expenses included Brown spending $87,000 to rent a Los Angeles recording studio for five hours and around another $8,500 to pay for members of Brown’s entourage to fly in the private jet. After STB refused to pay the invoice, Brown made “defamatory statements on social media about STB writing bad checks and not paying their bills,” the lawsuit further states.
Even though Brown has scored some fame since diverting his attention to rap music, he claimed on social media that his contract with STB isn’t exclusive and doesn’t give up his ability to record music outside the STB network.
“Everyone is saying his rap career is blossoming, but his rap career is dead,” said Kane. “I own the rights to all his music and he can’t release any music for the rest of his life unless I approve it.” The suit claims unspecified monetary damages.