Months after the 99 Problems rapper, Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter went into a protracted legal battle with Bacardi, there is news that an agreement has been reached between the two parties.
“Growing D’USSÉ over the past decade from an idea to one of the fastest-selling spirits in history has been a blessing. The next phase of this journey will further cement D’USSÉ’s legacy as one of the world’s most respected brands. I am excited to renew this partnership with Bacardi.”
Jay-Z
Jay-Z has had a 50/50 partnership with Bacardi that owns D’Usse since 2011. Jay-Z teamed up with Bacardi to launch the Cognac D’Usse, which grew tremendously, thanks to the partnership and Jay-Z’s name, and went onto become one of the biggest and well-respect names in the liquor industry.
However, a confrontation between Jay-Z and Bacardi emerged in 2022, when HOV demanded to look into the financial records, books and accounting details of the company.
According to Bloomberg, HOV and Bacardi have reached an agreement in the multi-billion dollars lawsuit. Per the terms of the said agreement, Jay-Z will sell his controlling stake in the company for $750 to D’Usse, and get to keep a “significant ownership stake.” Jay-Z claimed earlier that he was being shorted by Bacardi, who offered to give him only $500 million when, in fact, he should be getting $1.5 billion for his stake.
Following the agreement, Jay-Z released a statement to the media stating that he was happy to “renew” his partnership with Bacardi: “Growing D’USSÉ over the past decade from an idea to one of the fastest-selling spirits in history has been a blessing. The next phase of this journey will further cement D’USSÉ’s legacy as one of the world’s most respected brands. I am excited to renew this partnership with Bacardi.”
Jay was represented in the lawsuit by three law firms (Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP; Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP and Reed Smith LLP) and the banking investment firm Evercore.
