Fat Joe has issued a response denying allegations made by his former hypeman Terrance “T.A.” Dixon. As part of a $20 million lawsuit, Dixon claims his former boss, whose real name is Joseph Antonio Cartagena, engaged in “coercive labor exploitation, financial fraud, sexual manipulation, violent intimidation, and psychological coercion.”
“I’ve been tested the last few months – I’ve lost my big brother, my father, my mother and now I’m fighting against these disgusting lies,” wrote Fat Joe in a statement posted to his social media Wednesday. “But please know I will not break and I will never back down. I’ve had individuals in my circle take my love and kindness for weakness, but how many times must we forgive them?”
The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court Southern District of New York on June 19, details Fat Joe’s alleged sexual relations with women — including minors. Dixon is represented by Tyrone Blackburn, who is also the lead counsel in a high-profile case against Sean “Diddy” Combs.
Dixon states in the complaint that Fat Joe forced him “into humiliating situations, including sex acts performed under duress and surveillance, accompanied by threats of abandonment in foreign countries if [he] refused compliance.” By his own account, Dixon states in the suit that “he was coerced into more than 4,000 sexual acts.”
The suit also claims that Dixon “personally witnessed [Fat Joe] engage in sexual relations with children who were fifteen and sixteen years old” and lists three such Jane Does including a 16-year-old Dominican girl in New York, who “in exchange for cash, clothing, and payment of her cell phone bill … would [perform] oral sex and other sexual acts” on the rapper.
Fat Joe’s statement suggests that Dixon was “fired for doing something wrong,” and that instead of “just [taking] the L and [living] with it,” Dixon chose to go after his reputation. His statement continued, “They figure they can make up the most insane stories and, if they threaten you with a lawsuit, then you’ll pay and they’ll feel like they finally won. Problem with your theory, I’ve never let anyone on the streets extort me, so how would I ever let a crooked attorney and a coward ex-hype man extort me?? I’m from the Bronx!”
Fat Joe concluded his statement by addressing Blackburn directly, telling him “we will finish you in court.”
In the complaint, Dixon alleges Fat Joe deliberately stifled the creative, artistic, and commercial contributions he gave to the latter’s projects. He supported the artist by energizing the crowd during live performances, and he also contributed as a lyricist and background vocalist on such songs as “Congratulations,” “Ice Cream,” and “Money Over Bitches.”
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