Report: Jay-Z to Secure ‘Reasonable Doubt’ Shares in Seven Years

Jay-Z is set to secure Dame Dash’s share in Roc-A-Fella Records in seven years, following an impending auction. According to a report by TMZ, Jay-Z’s legal team has officially claimed the master recordings of his 1996 hit album, Reasonable Doubt, as part of this process.

Roc-A-Fella currently owns the copyright to the album and all its tracks, but Jay-Z’s attorneys have indicated that these rights will return to their original owner, Shawn Carter, better known as Jay-Z, by 2031. This means that whoever buys Dame Dash’s 33 percent share at the upcoming auction will own it for just seven years before Jay-Z takes over ownership permanently.

TMZ emphasizes that this move is purely a business decision, not personal. Legally, the copyrights of Reasonable Doubt were always set to revert to Jay-Z 35 years after its release. Jay-Z’s attorneys merely ensured the necessary paperwork was filed to confirm this arrangement.

Documents obtained by XXL reveal that Dame Dash’s 33.3 percent stake in Roc-A-Fella Records will be auctioned off by U.S. Marshals on August 29 in New York City. The minimum bid is set at $1.2 million, and interested bidders must be able to deposit $240,000 at the time of purchase.

This auction is a result of a court judgment against Dame Dash. Back in 2019, film director Josh Webber sued Dame for copyright infringement and won a civil judgment of over $800,000. The dispute centers around the film Dear Frank, which Webber claims Dame continued to promote as his own even after being removed from the production.

The documents also indicate that Jay-Z and Kareem “Biggs” Burke, who co-founded Roc-A-Fella Records with Dash and own the other two-thirds of the company, are opposed to the sale.

Source: TMZ, XXL