Rap star Cardi B is hoping to come out on top of another lawsuit that has been dogging her for years, later this month.
Cardi B has been fighting a man named Kevin Michael Brophy Jr., whom she claims has been attempting to extort her out of $5 million – over a tattoo.
Brophy claims the rap superstar stole his distinctive back tattoo and used it on the cover of her mixtape “Gangsta B#### Music Vol. 1” without the proper permission.
Cardi hired a graphic designer named Timm Gooden to create the cover for “Gangsta B#### Music Vol. 1” for $50. But her management wasn’t happy with the results, so he Googled the words “back tattoo” and came across Brophy’s back tattoo of a snake and a tiger.
Brophy says the cover art, which features Cardi drinking a 40 ounce of malt liquor while receiving oral sex, helped launch her career, so he sued her in October of 2017.
Brophy says the cover art ruined his life, humiliated him, and caused him to suffer mental anguish due to the attention Cardi has received since her career skyrocketed into the stratosphere.
He is asking for a cut of everything Cardi has earned since the release of “Gangsta B#### Music, Vol. 1.” The Bronx beauty said the lawsuit was nothing but a money grab.
“You [Brophy] haven’t, like, gone to no damn psychiatrist. How is this affecting your life? I want to know how is your client’s live [sic] is being affected,” Cardi snapped during a deposition. “How? It’s ridiculous. It’s wasting my time. It’s wasting my money. Like, I could really be with my kid right now. Like, I’m really upset because I really have to be with my kid…All because of some bulls##t, trying to get money, and then $5,000,000. Are you f##king kidding me?”
Cardi attempted to have the case tossed, saying the artwork for “Gangsta B#### Music, Vol. 1” fell under fair use laws, but the judge presiding over the case disagreed and rejected Cardi’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit.
Cardi and Brophy have tried to resolve the case before. They attempted to come to a settlement in August of 2020, and once again in March of 2021. However, neither party could reach an agreement.
The third round of settlement talks between Cardi B and Kevin Michael Brophy Jr. will take place on August 20 at 1:30 PM in Los Angeles.