Troy Ave Sued Over Using Disputed Track For His Song ‘Chuck Norris’
Troy
Ave
has
been
sued
in
federal
court
over
his
2016
song
“Chuck
Norris,”
with
the
company
that
represents
the
song’s
producer
CITO
claiming
that
the
jailed
rapper
doesn’t
have
the
right
to
profit
from
the
track.
Court
documents
obtained
by
HipHopDX
reveal
that
the
suit
—
filed
on
April
12
—
was
filed
by
In
The
Struggle
Productions,
LLC,
because
“no
compensation
or
payment
has
ever
been
provided
to,
or
even
offered
in
good
faith,
to
the
owner
of
the
musical
work
incorporated
into
a
highly
successful
song.”
The
company
claims
that
it
hasn’t
received
any
royalties
from
the
song,
despite
it
receiving
“millions
of
compensated
plays
on
Spotify
as
well
as
on
many
other
commercial
distribution
channels.”
It
says
that
Troy’s
song
“was
released
without
authorization
and
compensation,”
in
violation
of
their
rights.
AD
LOADING…
In
The
Struggle
Productions,
LLC,
is
the
company
that
signed
producer
Ruben
D.
Sosa,
Jr.
—
better
known
as
CitoOnTheBeat,
or
CITO,
who
has
produced
successful
tracks
for
the
likes
of
Cardi
B
and
Lil
Yachty.
The
company,
which
inked
Cito
to
a
deal
back
in
2012,
is
suing
Troy
for
quite
a
handsome
sum.
To
wit,
the
company
wants
$150,000
for
“each
act
of
infringement,”
punitive
damages
to
be
determined
at
trial,
$250,000
in
misappropriation
costs,
$250,000
in
attorney’s
fees,
$300,000
in
trademark
infringement
fees,
$350,000
in
violation
of
publicity
fees,
and
$500,000
in
unjust
enrichment
fees,
for
a
total
of
$1.8
million
plus
punitive
damages.
Check
out
parts
of
the
lawsuit
below.
Troy
Ave
sued
over
using
disputed
track
for
his
song “Chuck
Norris”
pic.twitter.com/sJEMKbh23y—
HipHopDX
(@HipHopDX)
April
20,
2024
Back
in
February,
Troy
Ave
(real
name
Roland
Collins)
began
serving
his
prison
sentence
following
a
shooting
incident
in
2016
that
resulted
in
the
death
of
his
bodyguard.
AD
LOADING…
The
Brooklyn
rapper
and
podcaster
Taxstone
got
into
a
fight
at
a T.I. concert
at
NYC’s
Irving
Plaza,
which
resulted
in
Ave
getting
shot
twice,
his
bodyguard
Ronald
“Banga”
McPhatter
murdered
and
two
bystanders
injured.
Taxstone
was
sentenced
to
35
years
in
prison while
Troy
Ave
was
handed
a
reduced
one-year
stint
in
jail.
AD
LOADING…
Troy
spoke
about
going
away
in
an
Instagram
video
captioned
“#FreeTroyAve”
and
appeared
to
confirm
he
was
turning
himself
into
authorities
to
begin
his
sentence.
“About
to
run
up
in
the
court,
you
might
not
see
me
for
a
while
but
just
know
the
streets
is
a
myth,”
he
said.
“Somebody
shot
at
me.
Instead
of
laying
down
and
dying,
I’d
have
been
a
hero,
a
martyr.
I
take
the
gun
and
bust
back.
“There
you
have
it,
here
go
the
consequences.
We
don’t
cry
over
spilt
milk.
You
take
the
lemons
and
you
make
lemonade.
Y’all
keep
supporting
and
keep
running
it.
And
send
prayers;
prayers
count
more
than
anything
…
I’m
up
out
of
here.”