Tennessean:A bankruptcy judge’s decision to switch Nashville rapper Young Buck’s case from a reorganization to a liquidation is frustrating the platinum rapper’s attempts to sign with Cash Money Records and end a contract dispute that has stifled his career since 2008.
Judge George C. Paine II signed an order converting the case from Chapter 11 reorganization to Chapter 7 liquidation Wednesday, and Buck, whose real name is David Darnell Brown, stands to lose more than his shirt. The trustee administering his estate has said she plans to sell the trademarked “Young Buck” moniker itself along with other assets.
In an interview Wednesday night, an exasperated Buck, 30, said the conversion is counterproductive because he was close to signing a recording deal with Cash Money Records that would allow him to pay all his debts and exit bankruptcy orderly.
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The proposed multiparty deal, independently confirmed by The Tennessean, would have settled Buck’s contract dispute with former mentor 50 Cent and his G-Unit Records and shipped him to New Orleans-based Cash Money. Buck is still under contract with G-Unit but has been prevented from recording since 2008 because of a personal falling-out with 50 Cent, whose real name is Curtis Jackson.
But trustee Jeanne Burton, who was appointed to shepherd Buck’s estate through bankruptcy, was forced to seek liquidation because there was no money left to pay bills coming due, said Barbara Holmes, a Nashville attorney representing Burton in the case.
“There was no deal finalized within the time frame that was necessary for the case to remain in Chapter 11,” Holmes said. “There are insufficient remaining funds in the estate to pay the ongoing administrative expenses that are due.”
Under Chapter 11, Buck would be able to craft a plan to repay creditors using future revenues. Under Chapter 7, his assets can be sold and distributed to creditors. Buck entered bankruptcy in October 2010.
Buck said the trustee’s move was shortsighted.
“I just wish the trustee would understand that I’m actually in a position to actually work again,” he said. “Either way it goes, you’re going to get paid. I’d be back working again. My income would only grow just by being a part of a company that’s as big as Cash Money and by being an artist as talented as I am. Cash Money provides me with a job to pay off the bankruptcy and creditors.”
Cash Money is one of the nation’s leading hip-hop labels and features artists such as Lil’ Wayne and Nicki Minaj.
Messages left for attorneys representing Cash Money and G-Unit were not returned.
It’s not clear what impact the conversion to Chapter 7 will have on the proposed deal reached between Buck, G-Unit and Cash Money, but Buck and his entertainment lawyer, Robin Mitchell Joyce, said they still hope to move forward. They are frustrated, however, that Burton has indicated she would liquidate the “Young Buck” trademark if the case was converted to Chapter 7.
“My name, Young Buck, has been with me since I was 12, 13 years old,” Buck said. “At the end of the day, it’s ridiculous. My name wasn’t given to me by G-Unit Records. They didn’t name me Young Buck. My mother calls me Young Buck.”
Holmes, however, said the trademark and other intellectual property rights belong to the bankruptcy estate so they can be liquidated to pay creditors and notified Cash Money’s attorney of that position. The move would prevent any artist or label from using the trademark without Burton’s approval, which probably would require a consideration of the outstanding debts owed to Buck’s creditors.
50 Cent, G-Unit say they're owed $10M
While securing a new record deal is the single most important thing Buck must do to advance his career, Holmes said the three-party deal would only be one component of a reorganization plan that would have to take all creditors into consideration.
In a bankruptcy, creditors are ranked by priority and paid in that order. The money Buck owes in taxes and child support, for example, would be ranked higher than the more than $10 million that 50 Cent and G-Unit say Buck owes them. To the extent the new record deal would have involved payments from Cash Money to G-Unit — an unsecured, nonpriority creditor — it could have ran afoul of that process in trustee’s eyes.
“That’s exactly the kind of details that would have to be worked out among the creditors,” Holmes said. “That just didn’t happen in time. There were not final terms of a deal that could be incorporated into a final plan.”
To date, creditors have submitted 22 claims totaling $11.5 million in Buck’s bankruptcy case.
Joyce said the bankruptcy process wasn’t geared toward an artist trying to reorganize in the music industry, which is driven by relationships and marked by complex deals. Buck’s situation was further complicated by the fact that his relationship with 50 Cent, who launched his career, fell apart in 2007 when Buck told an interviewer that touring was important to him because it was the only way he could make money. Buck was kicked out of the G-Unit rap group because 50 Cent interpreted the comment as a shot at him. He also forced Buck’s career into limbo by refusing to release him from the record label while simultaneously rejecting his album proposals.
“This is always about the relationships with the people,” Joyce said. “In order for Buck to come to a place where G-Unit understood where it’s own feelings are, and that it’s not in anyone’s interest to do an album, that’s about a lot of people’s personal feelings. If this was strictly economical, it would have been over in 10 minutes.”
Paine’s order converting the case won’t become final for two weeks, and Holmes said Buck or G-Unit can ask the judge to set it aside between now and then if they can make a deal that also makes a Chapter 11 reorganization feasible.
Buck also is facing a pending federal criminal charge of being a convicted felon in possession of a gun and ammunition. The case is scheduled to go to trial in April.
'Standing tall'
Undeterred, Buck vowed to persevere in the face of his current struggles and any other that may come his way. As frustrated as he is, he said the experience has taught him how to be a better businessman and made him more focused.
“I know a lot of companies are interested and are still interested even though I’m going through what I am right now,” said Buck, who has worked to stay engaged with fans through guest appearances on other performers’ songs and by giving music away online. “One thing you can always look forward to is Young Buck standing tall and making music. I just want to go forward now.”
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