I have a quick update on the neverending court battle between Megan Thee Stallion and Carl Crawford/1501 Entertainment. Unfortunately, Carl Crawford got his wish and will be able to drag this dispute out until next year. The next trial date is currently set for March 4, 2024, where hopefully, they will settle Megan's lawsuit against Carl and Carl's lawsuit against Megan.
As for me, I'm over it!
The way the courts allow people with money to use the legal system as a form of retaliation and bullying is maddening. Remember, this judge mistakenly signed a document ruling in Carl
Crawford's favor stating that "Something For The Hotties" is not an album. Now he is scared to make any rulings. Are judges not allowed to say enough is enough, both sides get your shit together, and the trial starts on this date no matter what???
It is evident that Carl Crawford is trying to play the out-of-sight, out-of-mind game with Megan's career by holding up the music. This is ironic, considering how 1501 Entertainment as a brand and a record label is out of sight and in nobody's mind unless there is a conversation asking when Megan will be free.
UNSOLICITED ADVICE TO MEGAN THEE STALLION
This leads me to my unsolicited advice for Megan Thee Stallion. I have been thinking about this lawsuit lately, and I have concluded that Megan must do more than get out of her contract with 1501 Entertainment; she must send a message to Carl Crawford and everyone in the industry that she is not the one to play with. They can play with those other girls, but not Ms. Holly's daughter.
How does she accomplish this? First, by letting Carl win, and second, by taking a page from Taylor Swift's playbook.
LET CARL WIN BEFORE 45 MINUTES TURNS INTO 45 YEARS
Megan Thee Stallion should just let Carl win, and by "win," I mean give him 45 minutes' worth of unreleased songs. I don't care if it is Rap songs, Pop songs, Rock songs, or 45 minutes of her humming. Just toss his ass a project, skip off into the sunset, sign with a major label (hopefully Universal/Republic), and have the industry really shaking.
This is not the first time I have suggested Megan take this approach; I referenced it in my piece, "I Didn't Tell Megan Thee Stallion To Be Spiteful, I Told Her To Be Like Nas." However, the context differed because I suggested it as a parachute plan in case the judge ruled against her.
I don't think Megan has time to wait on this judge.
In reading the court documents and watching how Carl is moving, it is crystal clear that Carl Crawford is not a label CEO who truly feels he has a valid case of an artist who did not fulfill her contract. He would want the judge's ruling as soon as possible if that were true. No, instead, Carl
Crawford likes things being in limbo because it keeps Megan in limbo. Carl could not care less if Megan gave him another album. He has already milked how many albums out of her and counted them as mixtapes or EPs?
What he wants is to stay connected to Megan so that she cannot go off and be successful without him. So, I say, if Carl really wants that CONNECTION and not the ALBUM, give him the album and cut off that connection. Because while Megan does not have to drop an album this year, I am worried about her not being able to release any music, including freestyles or features, in 2024.
To me, it is not worth drawing this case out just to get a judge to say SFTH is an album in 2024, 2025, or, god forbid, 2026...especially if that is what Carl Crawford really wants.
MEGAN THEE TAYLOR SWIFT
In 2019, when Big Machine froze Taylor Swift out of buying her catalog and then sold her music to her arch-nemesis Scooter Braun, Taylor did not just sit around and rely on the trolling power of her STANs. Instead, she acted like someone who remembers this is the music BUSINESS, and when it comes to business, it is all about the money. So, since the boys wanted to play with her music, she would play with their money.
During a CBS Sunday Morning interview, Taylor Swift confirmed that she would re-record her first six albums, saying, "I'm very excited about it. Because I think that artists deserve to own their work."
While I do believe that Taylor Swift believes that artists should own their work, that was definitely a power move sprinkled with pettiness.
By Taylor Swift re-recording her albums, it devalued the original masters because now they are no longer the only versions of the songs that exist. She knew that her fans would want to buy newer, up-to-date versions of the songs, which they have, and that could easily cut the value of the original masters by 50% or more.
This is what I want for Megan Thee Stallion. She needs to send a Taylor Swift-type message to Carl Crawford by re-recording "Make It Hot," "Tina Snow," "Fever," "Suga," "Good News," "Traumazine," plus "Thot Shit," and "Megan's Piano" so she can own those masters and then license her music whenever wherever to whatever she wants.
We all know that when Megan re-records "Realer," she will not be calling herself the "1501 Queen," and I would happily stream that version of the song.
I am advocating for this because Carl Crawford's response to Megan's claims of 1501 Entertainment being "undercapitalized" and possibly not having the funds to pay her if they lose the monetary portion of the lawsuit irked me. It came off as antagonistic, and it made me aware that Carl Crawford is probably not using his money to fund his countersuit; he is using Megan's money.
I say this because Carl Crawford's counterargument to Megan was, "1501 owns a vast catalog of valuable musical assets," then, the document proceeded to list all of Megan Thee Stallion's projects and hit songs. But, the part that got me was this statement: "These assets alone would be multiple times more than any damage award Ms. Pete could ever even hope to obtain."
Carl, who publicly acted like he couldn't recoup the $2 million he spent building Megan up because her music doesn't bring in that much, in court documents is telling the judge that any damages that Megan Thee Stallion may be awarded can be easily covered by the money coming in from her catalog.
Say what, Carl?
I think "Thot Shit" alone funds Carl's lawyers and his ability to drag this lawsuit out, and Megan needs to stop the money flow. Megan Thee Stallion needs to consult with her lawyers and see if anything prevents her from re-recording her project and drying up Carl Crawford's income flow. Then he can call Tory Lanez, and they can figure out where they fck'd up together.
* Scooter Braun sold Taylor Swift's catalog 17 months after purchasing it.
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