Akon has paid $850,000 to his ex-business partner to resolve a portion of the rapper’s ongoing litigation.
Devyne Stephens, a music executive who has worked with Jay-Z, Destiny’s Child, Usher, and Pink, sued the “Smack That” singer in 2021, claiming that he owed him money from a 2018 settlement deal.
Stephens requested that Akon’s New York assets be frozen in March, arguing that he would be unable to repay his debts without it.
According to Akon’s rep, the $850,000 payment settles at least a portion of Stephens’ lawsuit.
In a statement, Akon said, “This week I totally settled Devyne Stephens’ court move to freeze my New York assets.” “Despite the fact that I have several large claims against Stephens in the pending case, I gave him $850,000 – some of which I still contest – to demonstrate to the public that he was flat out wrong about any incapacity to pay the last installment of our prior settlement.”
According to the brief order, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron refused Stephens’ asset freeze action “as moot, as this issue has been otherwise handled according to an agreement between the parties.”
AkonStephens claims Akon still owns him millions of dollars in royalties.
“My work on Akon City in Africa and the Akoin cryptocurrency is far too vital to be tainted and destroyed by Stephens,” he added.
When arguing for the asset freeze, Stephens compared Akon’s ambitions for a futuristic metropolis in Senegal – complete with its own cryptocurrency called Akoin – to a Ponzi scheme.
In court papers filed Wednesday, Stephens’ lawyers claimed that Akon only paid the money because a judge had signaled that he would allow Stephens’ request to freeze his assets.
Stephens alleges that the musician owes him at least $3 million in royalties, and the two are still fighting it out in court.
“We are thrilled with Akon’s payment of $850,000 to Mr. Stephens to repay one of his outstanding debts,” Stephens’ lawyer Jeffrey Movit stated.
“We are certain that we will prevail on our other claims in this case.”