Key Takeaways
- T-Pain filed a lawsuit against Konvict Entertainment alleging that the label owes him $489,047 in unpaid royalties.
- The complaint alleges that Konvict received $1,304,127 from Zomba Recordings on March 30, and that T-Pain is entitled to 75 percent of net royalties collected from distributors.
- T-Pain and Konvict previously reached a settlement agreement resolving a separate 2018 dispute over an advance for Oblivion.
Next year will mark 20 years since T-Pain and Akon’s “Bartender,” and as much as we’d love to see the musical pioneers reunite on wax, they have some legal matters to settle first. On Wednesday (Sept. 9), XXL reported that the Thr33 Ringz artist is suing Konvict Entertainment over unpaid royalties totaling $489,047.
According to an 80-page filing lodged last Friday (Sept. 4) in Fulton County Superior Court, T-Pain alleged Akon’s label imprint failed to pay him nearly $500,000 of a $1.3 million royalty payment it received from distributor Zomba Recordings on March 30. The “Buy U A Drank (Shawty Snappin’)” hitmaker said he made multiple attempts to collect the money — all to no avail — before eventually being told in June to reach out to BuVision, the independent label helmed by Akon’s younger brother Abou “Bu” Thiam, for the outstanding balance.
Here’s everything you should know about T-Pain’s lawsuit against Akon’s Konvict Entertainment.
How T-Pain and Akon’s relationship began before the lawsuit
First and foremost, it helps to know a little history between the two artists. After leaving Nappy Headz to pursue a solo career in 2004, T-Pain found himself at the center of a major-label bidding war following the massive success of “I’m Sprung.” He ultimately turned every offer down — including a $900,000 signing bonus from Interscope — in favor of a $20,000 advance from Akon, who promised him something the others couldn’t: longevity.
“[Akon] said, ‘F**k $900,000 I got $20,000 and a career. I’m going to make sure that this $20,000 makes you the biggest artist of all time.’ Interscope didn’t say anything about that,” T-Pain explained during a livestream. “To this day, I’ve made 10 times that off that one song.”
From there, Teddy P went on to write “I Can’t Wait” for Akon’s 2006 album, Konvicted. A year later, the two joined forces once again for “Bartender” on Epiphany. They then reunited on 2008's "Holla Holla" from Freedom.
Why T-Pain says Konvict Entertainment owes him nearly $500,000
In legal documents obtained by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, T-Pain says he’s owed 75 percent of the net royalties Konvict Entertainment collects from distributors through sales of his music. According to the publication, the label received $1,304,127 directly from Zomba Recordings. T-Pain further alleged that Konvict received additional royalties tied to Freaknik: The Musical, which notably featured voice acting from Snoop Dogg, Lil Wayne, Rick Ross, and several others.
As noted in the lawsuit, Konvict Entertainment transferred part of those earnings to BuVision, which “paid a portion of the royalties but held back a remainder.” T-Pain went on to claim he gave Akon’s imprint notice that the rest still hadn’t been paid before eventually being “left with no other option” but to take legal action.
Interestingly enough, it’s not the first legal dispute between T-Pain and the label. Back in 2018, he sued over an advance he claimed Konvict Entertainment failed to pay for Oblivion. The case was settled last year for $114,000, with the “Can’t Believe It” singer’s latest suit alleging that the company has now breached that same agreement.
“To date, Konvict has not cured its breach of the 2025 Settlement Agreement,” T-Pain's legal counsel wrote.
What T-Pain and Akon have said about the lawsuit so far
At the time of reporting, neither T-Pain nor Akon has spoken publicly about the lawsuit, and as the AJC noted, Konvict Entertainment is the only defendant listed in the case. If we had to guess, neither artist is exactly hurting for money, but an agreement is an agreement.
Last month, REVOLT reported on Teddy P explaining why he sold his catalog for a rumored $100 million, with the singer citing how streaming changed the value of artists’ music without their consent. Meanwhile, Akon recently recalled being paid $1 million for a private concert in the Middle East just to perform “Lonely" over and over. That being said, if any of us were allegedly owed nearly $500,000, we can’t imagine we’d handle things much differently.
Hopefully the “Bartender” collaborators can get everything worked out. If nothing else, we wish them both nothing but continued success in their careers.