*Jermaine Dupri’s $18 million royalty battle with Sony Music has come to an end, with the producer and his So So Def companies voluntarily dismissing the lawsuit less than two months after filing it.
According to Music Business Worldwide, a notice filed Friday, Aug. 28, in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York states that the parties resolved the matter before Sony formally responded to the allegations. The dismissal is without prejudice, meaning Dupri and his companies could potentially bring the claims again. The terms of the resolution have not been disclosed.
Dupri sued Sony on July 6, seeking at least $18 million, plus more than $10 million in interest and attorneys’ fees. The complaint accused the company of years of unpaid or underreported royalties. Artists connected to the disputed recordings include Kris Kross, Xscape, Da Brat, Jagged Edge, Usher, Mariah Carey and Bow Wow.
The lawsuit centered on an internal audit that reportedly found irregularities in how Sony managed So So Def’s royalty accounts. According to the complaint, Sony did not report certain producer and override royalties tied to Kris Kross’ debut albums, “Totally Krossed Out” and “Da Bomb,” until 2023.
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Dupri’s suit further claimed Sony owed more than $2.2 million on those two records, and that account statements listed over $30 million in foreign sales tied to Kris Kross.
The complaint also targeted Sony’s treatment of an Xscape-related account, arguing a negative balance topping $1.5 million should have been wiped out under Sony’s Legacy Unrecouped Balance Program, a policy meant to shield eligible veteran artists from having old unrecouped debts deducted from current earnings.
At the time the suit was filed, Sony characterized the matter as a royalty accounting issue the two sides were still negotiating. The lawsuit has now been resolved, for now, and neither side has disclosed what led to the settlement.
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