For those fans who reside in places other than underneath a rock, Rick Ross’ corrections officers past is old news.
After Thesmokinggun.com, revealed the “embarrassing” details of Ross’ stint at the Florida Department of Corrections, DJ Vlad began interviewing celebrities such as Clipse and “Freeway” Ricky Ross (the man who the artist Rick Ross got his name from) and asking their opinion on the rapper’s past. Vlad unapologetically posted those interviews on his YouTube channel, a move that some say caused what happened next.
Looking to get Ross to comment on the scandal that nearly ruined his career, DJ Vlad approached the rapper and his entourage, camera in hand.
Vlad learned the hard way that that was not a very good idea.
According to reports of the incident, Ross “orchestrated a brutal attack” on Vlad, leaving the DJ with seven stitches below one of his eyes, a corneal abrasion, three facial fractures, and possible nerve damage.
Bloggers mashed away at their keyboards while major media outlets picked up the story. But there was no sign of Rick, or his alleged victim, in the media discussing the incident.
This was the quiet before the storm…
DJ Vlad Files Suit
DJ Vlad struck back, not with his fists, but with a $4 million lawsuit against the rapper.
A press release from Vlad’s attorney, Brian D. Caplan, read as follows:
“On August 15, 2008, a multimillion dollar assault and battery lawsuit was filed in the Federal District Court for the Southern District of New York by DJ Vlad (Vlad Lyubovny) against platinum recording artist Rick Ross (“William Leonard Roberts II”) stemming from an incident that took place on August 10, 2008 at the Ozone Awards in Houston, Texas. In the complaint, it is alleged that Rick Ross orchestrated a brutal attack upon DJ Vlad carried out by his accomplices in retribution for media coverage of Rick Ross’ prior life as a correctional officer… The complaint seeks $2,000,000 in compensatory damages and $2,000,000 in punitive damages.” (See the official complaint document here.)
Unfortunately, the MIA rapper has yet to publicly respond to the lawsuit, but the question now becomes two fold. With multimillion dollar lawsuits and fists flying, is it really worth it to perpetuate negative stereotypes by resorting to violence? Why isn’t Ross’ apparent anger directed toward the people who actually broke the story, Thesmokinggun.com?
