Nipsey Hussle's Estate Facing Legal Issues Over "Hussle & Motivate" Royalties: Report

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Nipsey Hussle performs onstage at Live! Red! Ready! Pre-Show, sponsored by Nissan, at the 2018 BET Awards at Microsoft Theater on June 24, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (

A singer claims she co-wrote and sung on the song "Hussle & Motivate" but she was never fairly compensated.

The estate of Nipsey Hussle has had to deal with a few court matters following his death in March. The latest, according to TMZ, comes from a singer who claims to have co-written and sung on the hook of "Hussle & Motivate" but never got paid for it.

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The singer, Tasleema Yasin, said that she had a huge role in creating Nipsey Hussle's Victory Lap single, according to court documents filed earlier today (Sept. 5). Yasin said that not only is her voice heard clearly on the hook but she also co-wrote the hook to "Hussle & Motivate." She argues that she's entitled to a huge cut of any money that the song made. She detailed that her voice is on the hook, specifically in a countermelody where she used her higher register.

She hasn't specified an amount in the court documents because she wants the estate to show the accounting and determine how much she's owed from there. It could be a pretty penny, though. Victory Lap garnered a ton of attention since its release, especially after the passing of Nipsey Hussle. It was also nominated for a Grammy. On top of that, "Hussle & Motivate" served as one of the singles off of the project and also had an accompanying music video which has over 24 million views on YouTube to date.

We'll keep you posted on any updates on Yasin's claim against Nipsey's estate.


About The Author
Aron A. is a features editor for HotNewHipHop. Beginning his tenure at HotNewHipHop in July 2017, he has comprehensively documented the biggest stories in the culture over the past few years. Throughout his time, Aron’s helped introduce a number of buzzing up-and-coming artists to our audience, identifying regional trends and highlighting hip-hop from across the globe. As a Canadian-based music journalist, he has also made a concerted effort to put spotlights on artists hailing from North of the border as part of Rise & Grind, the weekly interview series that he created and launched in 2021. Aron also broke a number of stories through his extensive interviews with beloved figures in the culture. These include industry vets (Quality Control co-founder Kevin "Coach K" Lee, Wayno Clark), definitive producers (DJ Paul, Hit-Boy, Zaytoven), cultural disruptors (Soulja Boy), lyrical heavyweights (Pusha T, Styles P, Danny Brown), cultural pioneers (Dapper Dan, Big Daddy Kane), and the next generation of stars (Lil Durk, Latto, Fivio Foreign, Denzel Curry). Aron also penned cover stories with the likes of Rick Ross, Central Cee, Moneybagg Yo, Vince Staples, and Bobby Shmurda.