Megan Thee Stallion sues her record label over the definition of an album

The new lawsuit against 1501 Certified Entertainment addresses whether last year’s Something for Thee Hotties counts toward her contract fulfillment.

Megan Thee Stallion is headed back to court. The Houston-based rapper (real name: Megan Ruth Pete) filed a new lawsuit against her record label, 1501 Certified Entertainment, over the question of what constitutes an album in her contract. It concerns last year’s Something for Thee Hotties, which was classified as a mixtape.

The lawsuit documents respond to a letter 1501 Certified sent Pete “out of the blue” in January alleging that last October’s Something for Thee Hotties — a compilation consisting of various freestyles from her YouTube channel along with the single “Thot S–“ and other tracks — did not count as an album for the purposes of fulfilling her recording contract.

In the lawsuit, Pete alleges that the contract’s only criteria for defining an album is that it be at least 45 minutes long, and Something for Thee Hotties fulfills that — in fact, it is exactly 45 minutes and two seconds long.

The lawsuit reads: “Given that 1501 waited more than two months after Pete’s release of the album Something for Thee Hotties to take this position, it is clear that its position is frivolous and has no basis in law or fact.”

It continues, “Pete can only speculate as to the reasons why 1501 has taken this new position. But the intended result of its actions is clear: 1501 wants to tie Pete down to release more albums under the contract to the financial benefit of 1501.”

This is not the first time the artist has struggled with her label. The documents of the new suit begin by alleging that “over the past two years, Pete and 1501 shared a long and tortured history of disputes with each other concerning Pete’s recording agreement.”

They allege that after signing her contract in February 2018, Pete soon realized that the terms as originally written “were entirely one-sided in favor of 1501, not consistent with industry standards, and wholly unconscionable to the detriment” of the rapper and that these terms had been misrepresented to her by 1501 founder Carl Crawford.

When she complained about it, 1501 tried to prevent her from releasing new music. In 2020, she started a previous lawsuit against the label, alleging they were blocking her from releasing new music because she wanted to renegotiate the terms of her contract. Through the use of restraining orders and legal proceedings, Pete and the label were able to amend the contract terms.

In the new lawsuit, Pete seeks a declaratory judgment that Something for Thee Hotties does qualify as an album and meets her contractual obligations. She demands a trial by jury.