MF DOOM‘s estate has filed a lawsuit against a former Stones Throw collaborator for allegedly stealing 31 of the rapper’s rhyme books.
According to Billboard, DOOM’s widow Jasmine Dumile Thompson has sued ex-label executive Eothen “Egon” Alapatt over the notebooks. The lawsuit was filed on Tuesday (October 24) with the California court system.
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The missing books in question reportedly contained written lyrics for tracks from Operation Doomsday,Madvillainy and MM…FOOD as well as other unreleased content.
Thompson previously called out Egon over the missing notebooks in an Instagram post under MF DOOM’s official account in March, including an alleged email exchange.
“Egon Give The Notebooks Back. @nowagain,” she wrote.
Alapatt was the General Manager of Stones Throw Records and used to manage Madlib, a frequent collaborator of the late MF DOOM.
“Alapatt never consulted with DOOM about his acquisition of the notebooks and took advantage of DOOM’s being out the country to obtain them,” the lawsuit reads.
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Alapatt allegedly denied that he had possession of the notebooks but then admitted to having them after being confronted by DOOM. He claims that DOOM owed him $12,500 in rent and since he paid it for the late rapper, he is the rightful owner of the works.
“Although Alapatt has professed that he ‘does not intend to publish’ the unauthorized digital copies he made, he does not have to ‘publish’ the copies of his infringing copies to be liable,” the complaint continues. “Regardless, [DOOM’s estate] alleges that Alapatt actually shared the copies of the notebook he made with others.”
The “Rhymes Like Dimes” rapper and producer (real name was Daniel Dumile Thompson) passed away in October 2020 at the age of 49. Whereas the cause of his demise was initially concealed from the public, it was later revealed that it was the product of side effects from taking ACE inhibitors.
After ingesting just two doses of blood pressure medication that he had been prescribed, the masked icon had a severe reaction called Angioedema that resulted in his throat, tongue and lips swelling.
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His death later sparked an inquest following his treatment at St. James Hospital in Leeds, England.
His wife explained that the staff’s negligence of DOOM’s needs contributed to his deteriorating condition (via Leeds Live). According to her, DOOM was unable to alert those on duty about needing help because his buzzer wasn’t within reach.
