The record company who signed the late 'Come Over When You're Sober' star has been accused by his mother of owing his estate multi-million dollars in unpaid royalties.
- Sep 30, 2021
AceShowbiz - Lil Peep's mother has claimed his record label owes the late singer's estate $4 million (£2.9 million).
According to Liza Womack's lawyer Paul A. Matiasic, First Access Entertainment (FAE) has "admitted" it owes the royalty revenue to the estate, but the label is refusing to hand the money over in a bid to hinder Womack's wrongful death and business lawsuit against them.
"FAE is trying to choke off her funds by denying her her royalty revenue that they know she's owed," Matiasic said in open court in Los Angeles on Tuesday (28Sep21).
He went on to add that his client's relationship with the label is so "dysfunctional" that it needs court intervention as the two parties try and reach an agreement.
"It's not true that it's dysfunctional," FAE lawyer John W. Amberg argued in court. "It also is not true that FAE owes the estate over $4 million. That's simply not true. That's just an argument used to gain someone's sympathy here."
Womack first filed her wrongful death lawsuit in October 2019, following her son's passing in November 2017, claiming that FAE, tour manager Belinda Mercer and others had neglected their professional commitments when Peep had told them he was "anxious, stressed, overwhelmed, burnt out, exhausted, and physically unwell."
FAE counter-sued Womack for selling merchandise with her son's name on it without its consent, after which Womack filed a cross-complaint in March (21), alleging that FAE and label boss Sarah Stennett "engaged in a cover-up" after Peep's death, "purposefully" withholding money to prevent Womack from "earning from Peep's legacy."
Womack and her lawyer asked the court to separate the business lawsuits and the wrongful death suit, with Judge Teresa A. Beaudet agreeing, "It does seem to me that there is merit in getting the business issues resolved. It's going to take a while to deal with the (wrongful death) tort case. We're just trying to improve upon the delay that's going to be inevitable so the parties aren't stepping on each other in the business world."
Judge Beaudet added that, if Matiasic wants the case to be divided into separate components, he must prepare a motion in time for the next hearing on 12 October (21).
