Iggy Azalea is not here to play nice – or settle for chump change.
The Aussie rapper has unleashed on Universal Music Group (UMG), claiming they’ve been withholding “millions of dollars in back pay” and that their lawyers tried to brush her off with a laughable $18,000 settlement instead of what she says is an amount “in the 8 figure range.”
Drake might be taking legal swings at UMG, but he’s not the only one. Azalea, real name Amethyst Amelia Kelly, blasted the company in a fiery series of posts on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday, stating:
“Crazy how in my entire career I was never paid a single royalty by Universal Music for anything outside of the USA. They owe me millions of dollars in back pay, that they technically stole from me, as per my contract I am due payment. The amount owed is in the 8-figure range,” she wrote.
“Last week they tried to respond to my lawyer and offer me a settlement of 18k. I’m told this is a normal response from their lawyers and after appearing in court they end up paying millions as they’re supposed to.”
And she’s not just mad about her own missing millions – she’s calling UMG out for allegedly exploiting other artists too.
“I’d like to publicly say that I think Universal Music are criminals who actively take advantage of ALL of their artists in perpetuity for their own gain … Universal music really needs to do better in their treatment of the artists who quite literally earn them millions via intellectual property they had zero part in creating. Yuck.”
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Then came the deathblow. In a follow-up post dripping with fury, she straight-up threatened UMG, declaring:
“Universal music mark my words you ugly bitch – You will pay me what’s owed.”
She added, “This has been going on between myself and them (privately) for over two years and counting, by the way.”
Azalea, who signed with Island Def Jam under the UMG umbrella in 2013 before shifting to Island Records and ultimately parting ways in 2018, claims the company never paid her royalties for anything outside of the United States.
For now, UMG has stayed silent, but Iggy’s accusations aren’t the first time UMG has been accused of playing fast and loose with artist payouts. Last year, Limp Bizkit sued the company, alleging they’d “not seen a dime in royalties” thanks to what they claimed was a software system designed to “systematically prevent artists from being paid their royalties.”
Stay tuned, because this battle is far from over.
Crazy how in my entire career I was never paid a single royalty by universal music for anything outside of the USA.
They owe me millions of dollars in back pay, that they technically stole from me, as per my contract Iam due payment.
The amount owed is in the 8 figure range.…— IGGY AZALEA (@IGGYAZALEA) March 15, 2025
