Miami bred rapper Rick Ross may be facing another don in court, this time it's not a DJ but the real Rick Ross who says that the rapper is using his name illegally.
According to sources, drug king pin Rick Ross (the real one) is planning to file a lawsuit against Rick Ross the rapper and his label home Def Jam Records, claiming the rapper stole his identity.
The case originally started in 2006 when Ross sent a cease-and-desist letter to Def Jam regarding the issue which Ross alleges were ignored. Upon the real Rick Ross's release from prison in 2009, he made it clear that the rapper was using not only his name, but his entire image as a drug dealer to sell records.
Ross claims that Miami rapper Rick Ross (William Leonard Roberts II) signed a multimillion dollar deal in 2006, based on his image and likeness as a drug dealer.
The real Rick Ross controlled thousands of workers at the height of his power in the mid-1980's, who dealt millions of dollars worth of cocaine each day.
In 1996, Ross was sentenced to life in prison for attempting to purchase over 100 kilograms of cocaine, but the verdict was over turned after a series of explosive articles appeared in the San Jose Mercury News, which exposed the C.I.A.'s role in distributing cocaine to Black communities to fund Contra fighters in Nicaragua.
The real Rick Ross and his legal team have dubbed their lawsuit as The War Against the 4 (Def Jam, Universal, Roberts and more), The Thriller of the Dealers, and The Real' vs. the Rap' Deal.
This summer promises to give us exciting times in the rap music business as Rick Ross fights the power for control of his name in commerce by any means necessary.
The real Rick Ross has been actively touring urban America spreading his message, and motivational speaking to at-risk youth, the hood, ex-offenders, and recovering addicts, about the powers of redemption, and he spoke at the annual Savior's Day as a guest of Minister Louis Farrakhan.
A movie about his life, written by producer Nick Cassavettes, is slated for release next year.
The rapper Rick Ross (William Leonard Roberts II) is preparing to release his fourth album Teflon Don this summer.