Chance the Rapper Hit With $3M Lawsuit From Former Manager Pat Corcoran - Billboard

According to the complaint filed in Cook County Circuit Court of Illinois on Monday, Corcoran alleges that Chance the Rapper (real name Chancelor Bennett) ignored his professional advice in the lead-up to the release of his debut studio album, The Big Day, on July 26, 2019, and subsequently blamed Corcoran for the album’s mixed response, as well as poor ticket sales for the accompanying tour.

After Bennett fired Corcoran, Corcoran alleges his requests for more than $3 million in unpaid commissions were denied, with Bennett's father, Ken Bennett, instead offering a flat sum of $350,000.

2013 -- the date Corcoran says that Bennett agreed to pay him 15% commission on all touring, merch and album sales, among other income streams -- as well as to enforce a sunset clause that will entitle him to future commissions for a three-year post-termination period ending Apr.

The 20-page suit (read in full here) narrates Corcoran’s years-long relationship with Bennett and his instrumental role in building the rapper’s career beginning in 2012 -- a journey that culminated in Bennett's rise to superstardom and Grammy win for best rap album in 2017 for his mixtape Coloring Book.

Not only characterized as a savvy deal where "Corcoran and Bennett were able to secure the funds necessary to clear the album," which included features from Kanye West, Justin Bieber, Young Thug and others, and they were not required to pay any royalties to Apple, the suit also signals it as a “paradigm shift for the music industry" that led to a flood of independent artists carving out successful careers free of label influence.

Included is the deal Corcoran struck with New Era Cap Company for a Chance the Rapper-branded hat that went on to become one of the best-selling non-sports caps in New Era’s history, resulting in "massive profits" for Bennett and his associates.

Corcoran instead negotiated a deal with New Era in which Cool Pop Merch, LLC purchased the hats wholesale and sold them exclusively on chanceraps.com.

A chunk of the complaint is dedicated to Corcoran’s fraught relationship with Bennett's father and brother, Ken and Taylor Bennett, who exerted increasing influence over the direction of the rapper’s career around The Big Day's release.

The relationship only grew more strained from there, with Corcoran claiming that Ken and Taylor (“despite having little or no experience in the music industry”) began steering Bennett's career in a direction that conflicted with the manager’s vision.

Following the tour’s cancellation -- and after Ken and Taylor allegedly “eroded” Bennett's confidence in Corcoran -- the manager says Bennett blamed him for the relative failure of the Big Day album and tour “rather than accept that his own lack of dedication had doomed the project.” Corcoran was ultimately fired on Apr.

"Despite months of outreach and efforts at reconciliation," the complaint concludes, "Bennett has refused to pay Corcoran the amounts Corcoran is fairly owed under the parties' long-standing agreement and well-settled course of conduct."