NEW YORK — Jay-Z’s business entities sued a New York City licensing firm, claiming it cheated the companies as part of a “colossal accounting scandal.”
The lawsuit accuses Iconix Brand Group Inc. of lying about its finances when it made deals with the rapper’s Roc Nation apparel company. There was no immediate response to a phone message Friday seeking comment from Iconix.
When Roc Nation entered into a brand partnership with Iconix in 2013, the defendant company was fabricating financial reports to falsely inflate its earnings, according to the suit filed Thursday in state court in Manhattan.
The suit says Jay-Z’s companies “have incurred substantial legal expenses in connection with, among other things, the federal government’s investigations into Iconix’s massive fraud.”
The plaintiffs are seeking payment of legal fees and unspecified damages.
