Jay-Z is accused of ‘poisoning’ ex-business partner Damon Dash’s auction of Reasonable Doubt copyright by New York City

A new party has gotten involved in Jay-Z’s ongoing feud with his former business partner Damon Dash: the City of New York.

Ahead of Dash’s auction of the copyright to Jay-Z’s classic debut album Reasonable Doubt, a lawyer for New York City’s Department of Social Services has accused the rapper of ‘poisoning’ the auction.

In a video posted to X (formerly Twitter) on Friday, Dash read aloud documents filed by the city lambasting the rapper.

The city’s lawyer accused Jay-Z (real name: Shawn Carter) of trying to deflate the final value of the auction — which will benefit the city, as Dash owes a substantial amount in child support debt and unpaid taxes — by misrepresenting the value of Dash’s third of Roc-A-Fella Records — including the Reasonable Doubt copyright — according to TMZ.

Jay-Z had previously claimed through his legal team that Dash’s stake of the album would revert back to him in 2031, but New York City has disputed that date in its filing.

The city says that, according to the rapper’s recording deal with Roc-A-Fella Records (which he co-founded in 1994), Dash’s copyright extends much further — all the way until 2098.

‘The auction should be conducted in a manner that will bring the highest price for the benefit of affected judgment creditors,’ attorney Gerald E. Singleton wrote in his filing.

He added that Jay-Z’s contract with Roc-A-Fella describes his album Reasonable Doubt as ‘work made for hire,’ which would allegedly allow the label — and therefore whoever Dash sells his stake to — to retain the copyright until 2098.

The filing indicates that New York City expects the auction’s final bid could be as much as ten times what it would be if the copyright was thought to last nearly until the next century, as opposed to just seven years. 

According to the city’s filing, the statements about the Reasonable Doubt copyright could harm its interests in getting the highest bid possible. 

A successful auction would benefit the Department of Social Services’ goals, as Dash owes $193,000 in child support, according to TMZ.

He is also reportedly on the hook for several million dollars in unpaid taxes that are owed to the city.

The auction, which was originally scheduled for August 29 of this year, was to begin with opening bids at $1.2 million, and a $240,000 deposit was required of all bidders. 

Roc-A-Fella Records went on to dispute the city’s filing on Monday in a letter obtained by DailyMail.com.

Jay-Z’s attorney, Alex Spiro, began by claiming there was ‘no merit to NYC’s accusations and requests.’

He wrote that the city was incorrect to attribute the statements about the copyright’s term to his client, as Jay had only filed a notice of termination with the copyright office, which shows his intent to regain the copyright. 

Jay-Z’s attorney shot back in a letter obtained by DailyMail.com. He said NYC does not have an interest in the copyright, and also claimed it was far too early to be concerned about when the copyright might revert to the rapper; pictured in 2020 in LA

He went on to say that New York City has no interest in the copyright to Reasonable Doubt, and he wrote that potential bidders had the right to know that the copyright they were bidding on could revert to Jay-Z as soon as 2031.

Spiro added that debates about the termination notice were ‘woefully unripe,’ and he urged a judge to reject the city’s request for an advisory opinion on the termination notice.

In a statement provided to DailyMail.com, Dash defended the auction of his Roc-A-Fella interests. 

‘Since 2021, Jay has been trying to block the lawful sale of my 1/3rd interest. He even had bylaw provisions adopted to prevent sales to third parties, which the court ultimately invalidated,’ Dash said. ‘Now, in 2024, his team is spreading falsehoods to deter legitimate bidders from spending millions at auction, hoping to snatch it up on the cheap.’