Rapper Young Buck is in Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings. Young Buck became famous and successful with the rise of major celebrity rapper 50 Cent and the group known as “G-unit,” wherein Young Buck was a beloved member. Things have changed since the “G-Unit” heyday, namely Young Buck’s success. He now finds himself facing the Chapter 7 bankruptcy process.
According to The Wall Street Journal, bankruptcy agents will facilitate the liquidation of Young Buck’s assets, including all of the rappers intellectual property (or IP), which encompasses trademarks and copyrights, mastered editions of recordings, other compositions not yet published, all royalties and licenses and more.
In order for the bankruptcy liquidation auction to actually take place in Nashville in May, a United States Bankruptcy Court in Tennessee must give his approval first. If it is approved, the auction — likely to be conducted in an attorney’s office in Nashville — will attract all sorts of strategic buyers. Those in the music or advertising industries will likely see the ability to buy rights to Young Buck’s success as a great opportunity.
Items like mastered copies of songs can — under the right circumstances — prove to be quite a profitable investment. They can be used, for example, in commercials, with the buyer of those rights profiting from any success connected to the IP that was originally another person’s. It can seem quite harsh for a creative mind to be unable to prosper off his past work, but there is hope. Young Buck can create new work that will be protected from the agreements made under this bankruptcy process.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, “Young Buck Songs, Royalties on the Block,” Jacqueline Palank, April 6, 2012