Antonio Brown has some explaining to do.
The former Tampa Bay Bucs WR is once again being sued, this time by a Florida music promoter for allegedly trying to trick him out of $500,000 — including using rapper Lil Wayne’s name to get more money.
Ryan Kane, owner of Secure the Bag Entertainment (STB), filed the suit Wednesday in Sarasota County Circuit Court, accusing Brown of breach of contract and defamation over an “exclusive artist agreement” he signed in July with the Tampa Bay-based record label.
It claims Brown tried to beat the company out of $178,000 by submitting “fraudulent” expenses for reimbursement, hawking STB owner Ryan Kane a fake high-end watch for $160,000, and making racist, sexist and threatening remarks towards company execs and others.
Kane told The New York Post he considers 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,” said Kane, referring to the team that severed ties with the unsigned free agent before the 2019 season over a series of off-the-field incidents.
“I gave him … a huge advance and an opportunity to make money legitimately, and all he did was walk off the field.”
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Kane said he started his company earlier this year and recruited Brown after they formed a friendship. He said he gave Brown a $150,000 advance to sign with the music company and said both parties were initially very excited about shooting a video to promote Brown’s song “Cracked,” which features Lil Wayne.
However, the friendship took a bad turn within weeks as Kane said Brown told him that Lil Wayne wanted to be paid “$250,000 in cash” – and receive the money directly from Brown only. Kane then reluctantly gave Brown a $250,000 check.
Something felt off so Ryan discussed the matter with Lil Wayne’s reps, and they confirmed they never asked Brown to get the money upfront and that Lil Wayne was only expecting to be paid $150,000.
The suit alleges Brown attempted to defraud STB out of the remaining $100,000 to keep for himself.
Brown has scored some fame since turning to rap, but he continues to act in a way that turns people off. It is unlikely he will ever see an NFL field again, so he has no choice but to go hard in his music career.
“Everyone is saying his rap career is blossoming, but his rap career is dead,” insisted Kane. “I own the rights to all his music. He can’t release any music for the rest of his life unless I approve it.”
The suit seeks unspecified monetary damages.
