Swizz Beatz and Timbaland settled their lawsuit with Triller after suing the service last month for $28 million, an amount they claimed was owed after their sale of Verzuz to the service in March 2021.
The settlement is not known in the late Thursday announcement, beyond a promise that the settlement will increase the ownership stake given to artists that Timbaland and Swizz Beatz brought to Triller as part of the original deal. Swizz Beatz and Timbaland said that Verzuz has always been a platform that is by the artists, for the artists and with the people. We re glad to come to an amicable agreement with Triller and continue to give fans the music and community that they have come to know and love from the brand. Verzuz and Triller will always be a safe place for creators and their art. Bobby Sarnevesht, Triller's executive chairman and co-founder, said nothing will change that. This is a victorious moment in the Triller and Verzuz relationship as we march together toward the public markets. The two producers, who founded the popular Verzuz virtual battle series in March 2020 on Instagram Live, sold it to Triller in August for unidentified terms, according to a lawsuit filed in August. Swizz Beatz and Timbaland have legal names, Kasseem Daoud Dean and Timothy Mosley both received equity in the sale, along with 43 artists who had participated in the program. Their lawsuit alleged that Triller had failed to make a significant payment to the duo in January of this year, and that the service had agreed in a settlement to pay $18 million in March, followed by $1 million a month for the following 10 months, but none of those promised payments had been forthcoming this year.
A Triller spokesman said at the time of the August lawsuit that the company had already paid over $50 million in cash and stock to the pair, and that the pair did not meet the threshold to receive any additional earn-out payments, which is what Triller said was at the heart of the dispute.
The Triller spokeswoman said in August that it was unfortunate that they chose to elevate this to the press as a legal shakedown and they don't include delivery of a set number of Verzuz for 2022. We hope this was just overzealous lawyers jumping the gun. If this happens in court, we look forward to a decision that weighs all the facts. Six Verzuz challenges have aired so far in 2022, with the most recent being more than two months ago when Luny Tunes and DJ Nelson competed on July 17.
The joint announcement said Swizz Beatz and Timbaland remain proud of the platform they created with Verzuz and its acquisition by Triller due to the willingness to celebrate and showcase artists.