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Snoop Dogg and Ice Cube are firing back at their former business partner, who previously sued them and the rest of Mount Westmore for breach of contract.
According to a report TMZ published on Thursday, February 26, the two West Coast legends have filed a countersuit against Westside Merchandising for alleged fraud. Snoop Dogg and Ice Cube, alongside Too $hort and E-40, made a licensing deal with the company after the four rappers formed their group Mount Westmore in 2020. The veteran MC's alleged the company made false promises, and have yet to pay them hundreds of thousands of dollars they claim they're owed.
In the lawsuit, Snoop and Cube allege that Westside Merchandising positioned itself as a better company in order to prevent them from signing with an even bigger merch brand. Westside allegedly claimed they could help make the group members more money through partnerships they had with retail stores.
The artists said they received reports from Westside that their merch generated $808,000 in sales from concert dates, over than $90,000 from stores, and $13,000 in e-commerce sales. However, they allegedly failed to provide the group proper accounting. Although the company paid the artists a generous advance, Snoop and Cube claim Westside has yet to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars they're still owed from their contract.
"The countersuit is full of falsehoods and fabrication, and reeks of desperation," Westside's lawyer, John Fowler, tells TMZ. "The purpose is clearly to distract from their own fraud and contractual breaches which are outlined very clearly in our own amended complaint. To date, the other side has lost every motion they’ve brought in this case, and they are trying to cover up the mounting losses by filing a frivolous claim. The case is simple: the other side defrauded my client out of over $1.3 million, and caused many millions more in damages for failing to perform the services they promised. The Court has repeatedly denied the other side’s attempts to shield itself from basic discovery, even accusing the opposing lawyers of 'borderline insubordination' on the record. We look forward to trying this case."
Westside Merchandising first sued all four members of Mount Westmore in 2024. The company alleged that Snoop, Cube, E-40, and Short allowed the company to make merch for their 60-date tour in 2022. Westside paid over $1.3 million, but the group only performed at a handful of shows. That case has yet to be resolved.