By Ismael AbduSalaam
Venture capitalist Ron Goldberg officially filed suit Tuesday (September 30) against several former business partners, alleging they conspired with new Death Row owners Global Music Group to cut him out of the winning June $24 million dollar bid.
In the lawsuit, Goldberg claims that several investors he recruited, including the financing institution MicroBanc, LLC, conspired with other “unknown parties” to close the deal without his knowledge.
Death Row’s valuable back catalogue went to auction this past summer due to founder Suge Knight filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2006.
Knight’s bankruptcy was primarily the result of losing a $100 million dollar lawsuit to Lydia Harris, who successfully argued she and her husband financed the company’s 1991 launch.
The June auction sale is also being challenged by Suge Knight’s estate and the Death Row trustees, who filed a lawsuit in August claiming the sale was invalid due to Global Music Group failing to supply the $24 million sales price by the July 29 deadline.
Once resolved by the courts, the owners of Death Row will retain the rights to the labels entire back catalogue of albums, videos, and unreleased tracks from Dr. Dre, Tupac Shakur, Tha Dogg Pound, The Lady of Rage, and others.
To date, the fallen label giant has sold close to 50 million records worldwide and generated over $750 million in revenue.