Nipsey Hussle's Estate Beats $5 Million 'Hussle & Motivate' Lawsuit

Nipsey Hussle‘s estate recently beat a $5 million lawsuit from a Los Angeles singer who claimed to be an uncredited co-writer on the late rapper’s “Hussle & Motivate” track.

Tasleema Yasin had reportedly filed the claim back in December of 2022, almost three years since the rapper was killed. The songwriter claimed that she wrote a “prominent vocal phrase” in the “Victory Lap” song and contributed to the song’s chorus and countermelody. According to the court documents, an initial settlement offer of $100,000 was made to Yasin, along with a 10% share of the masters’ royalties from the song and three other tracks. However, Yasin alleged that he was not honored what was agreed, forcing her to seek damages of at least $7.5 million. She later offered to settle for $5 million.

Court documents obtained by HipHopDX revealed that Yasin's case was dismissed last Tuesday (April 11) after she failed to respond to the Order to Show Cause, which is issued when a court order or the demand of a judge requires a party to justify or explain why the court should or should not grant a motion or a relief. Judge Stephen V. Wilson ruled that Yasin, who chose to represent herself, did not provide enough evidence as to why the court should pursue with the case.

“The file in this case lacks the papers that would show it is being timely prosecuted, as reflected below,” Wilson wrote in the order dated March 28. “Accordingly, the Court, on its own motion, hereby orders plaintiff(s) to show cause in writing no later than April 4, 2023 why this action should not be dismissed as to all remaining defendants, for lack of prosecution.”

Nipsey Hussle released "Hussle & Motivate" back in February of 2018. It was featured on his debut album Victory Lap, which earned him a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Album.