Cardi B Reaches Settlement in Lawsuit With Ex-Manager
Written by SOURCE on December 28, 2020
Cardi B‘s long legal battle with her former manager has come to an end. Two years after Klenord “Shaft” Raphael accused the rapper of boxing him out of her career after he set her on a path to fame, both Shaft’s lawsuit and Cardi’s countersuit have been dismissed with prejudice.
In documents obtained by AllHipHop, both parties agreed to pay their own legal fees for the two respective lawsuits. The distinction of dismissal with prejudice means that neither party can bring another lawsuit on this issue.
Cardi celebrated the news on social media.
Shaft is a credited co-writer on Cardi’s breakout hit “Bodak Yellow.” He claimed he orchestrated her early rise, only to be removed from the equation when an ascendant Cardi B moved to Quality Control.
“Since discovering Cardi B in 2015, Shaft has played an integral role in developing her music career and public image,” Shaft’s representatives told Complex at the time. “While he is proud of their successful collaborations as she evolved from Instagram influencer to music megastar, Shaft is disappointed by her actions to freeze him out of her career, which are detailed in the complaint.”
Cardi claimed in her countersuit that Shaft was an overbearing manager who demanded nearly extortionate cuts of her money (50% of her Sony publishing deal on top of other fees) and attempted to control aspects of her personal life. There’s no word on whether the two parties exchanged money.
