It looks like bankrupt rapper 50 Cent does not want his “competition” to know how much he’s paid to be a spokesperson for high-end Frigo Revolution underwear or Dutch Effen vodka.
Attorneys in the bankruptcy proceedings of rapper Curtis James Jackson III (aka 50 Cent) are asking the judge to grant permission to keep the full financial details of his endorsement contracts confidential. Of note, 50 Cent claimed on Instagram that he was paid $78 million on the deal when it was first signed, but he later admitted to exaggerating his wealth and borrowing the expensive jewelry he frequently wore at a court hearing this year.
Legal experts note that debtors must reveal all of their assets, including endorsement deals, to creditors as a part of the bankruptcy filing. That said, bankruptcy judges can and not infrequently do grant exceptions to this requirement.
Statement from 50 Cent’s lawyer
“No entertainer wants the terms of its endorsement contracts made public because the results of that disclosure would be disastrous by giving competitors an unfair advantage in allowing them to undercut the financial terms of the entertainer’s endorsement deals,” Jackson’s lawyers pointed out at the bankruptcy proceedings.
50 Cent’s underwear deal keeps him associated “with the luxury end of the consumer market and provides [him] with a potential upside that will help pay back his creditors,” his lawyers argued, noting the brand is also affiliated with major sports celebrities like Derek Jeter and Carmelo Anthony.
More on 50 Cent bankruptcy
With his celebrity lifestyle crumbling around him, Jackson first filed for bankruptcy in mid-July, claiming his financial problems resulted from two multimillion-dollar judgments against him. One lawsuit was a business deal to develop headphones gone bad that ended up costing him $18.4 million when his partner sued. In a separate case, another jury came to the conclusion that Jackson must pay $7 million to Lastonia Leviston, a woman who claimed that he put a sex tape of her online as a part of a personal vendetta against her ex-boyfriend Rick Ross.
